How To Train Your Wolf
by writing4thewolves
Summary: Falling in love with your best friend is never easy. Falling in love with your best friend who is at least 20 years older than you and is a full-time werewolf that protects the place you live from rogue vampires? Even harder. Lilly Uley certainly has her work cut out for her.
1. Chapter 1

**IM BACKKKKKKK. SO SO sorry for such a long wait. I've been literally trying to post this story for TWO months with no success. Big shout out to the fanfic people - who HAVEN'T answered any of my emails requesting help. Anyways, first chapter of the new story is below :)**

 **I had a lot of requests for a story involving Quil and Claire. And, I thought about it, but it has been done so many times and I've read great ones myself, I just didn't see how I could put my own spin on it. So, this story involves Sam and Emily's daughter, Lilly, and a certain wolf (you must read to find out ;) ) and their imprinting. While it's not necessarily about Quil and Claire, it is a similar situation.**

 **So, I really hope you guys like it. Thank you so much for your kind words on MYOD and for your patience with the slow updates. I'm going to do my best to update as often as possible. The second chapter of this story is still kind of in the works and I wasn't rushing to finish it since I couldn't get this one to upload lol.**

 **Please leave me a review! They are much appreciated!**

 **Much love!**

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A streak of lightning cut across the alarmingly grey sky, illuminating it, along with everything else close by, for a long moment. It looked like it might split the entire sky right into two, sharp and vibrant in the air, but within the next second, it was gone. A clash of thunder followed in its wake.

I watched out the muddled glass, nose nearly pressed up against the window as I tried to see past the raindrops that were assaulting the house. Everything outside looked like one big blur; the trees that made up the forest on the edge of the backyard seemed to be mushed together with the sudden increase in moisture in the air. It was only early evening, but the darkening sky was deceiving and made it look well past dusk.

Another drum of thunder shook the walls of our two-storey house, rattling an old picture frame that hung above the kitchen sink. I flinched away from the large window in surprise, nearly falling out of my chair in my haste. One of my notebooks slid off the edge of the kitchen table next to me, fluttering to the hardwood floor softly.

I sighed.

"Lilly, honey," a gentle voice firmly broke through my traveling mind. "Away from the window, please."

I jumped once more, turning to see my mother stationed at the edge of the table, her hands resting on her hips as she watched me. There was flour in the shape of handprints on her yellow apron and her long, curly black hair was tied back into a hasty bun at the nape of her neck. This was her signature look for when she was working in the kitchen, which was often.

I'd never admit it, but I'd been so distracted that I hadn't even noticed her in the room. Though, judging by the two containers of freshly baked muffins cooling on the countertop, I'd been oblivious to her presence for quite some time. My eyes found the clock above the stove and my frown deepened. Had I really been sitting here, staring into oblivion for nearly an hour?

I tried to pretend that she hadn't been speaking to me like I was a toddler, because I knew she was worried, too. So, I slid my chair back, its legs screeching horrendously on the floor as I moved a good distance away from the window. It was far enough to appease my mother, that not so far that I couldn't still see the backyard if I really stretched in my seat.

"I'm sure they'll be back soon enough," she said. I hoped that her words weren't meant to be reassuring, because all my ears heard was the undeniable concern that coated her soft voice.

I sighed once more. It wasn't fair—my mother had far more practice in dealing with these kinds of situations than I did. Sure, I'd been in the know for a little while now, but I was really just beginning to understand the finer details. With that being said, I couldn't help being on edge, knowing anything could happen in the blink of an eye, whether I liked it or not.

"If you were working on that homework like you told me you would, I'm sure the time would have passed much more quickly," Mom murmured with a slight smile in her voice. She hadn't turned around from the counter, where she'd begun seasoning the chicken she was making for dinner.

I glanced down at the blank notebook before me. It was a typical Thursday night—or, at least, it _had_ been, up until an hour ago. And, while I did have an essay due in my art history class tomorrow morning, I just couldn't seem to concentrate. This sudden situation had since taken all of my attention.

I didn't really know how anyone expected me to focus, considering they were still out _there_ , risking their lives for everyone's safety. A stupid, thousand-word essay seemed completely pointless to me, when I couldn't even guarantee that all my family members were to return safely to us tonight.

You see, my family just happened to have what I considered to be the most special secret there was. It truly put other family secrets to shame. Not only was it severely unique, a once in a lifetime kind of situation, but it was also highly unusual. I didn't have many words to describe it to its full extent—not that I was allowed to tell anyone that wasn't already involved, anyway.

It wasn't like anyone would believe me even if I tried to.

I mean, what exactly _do_ you call a bunch of overgrown teenagers who erupt into giant wolves at the mercy of their uncontrollable, and sometimes, lethal tempers?

This was my point.

The pack—as everyone called them—had become an essential part of the Quileute tribe long ago. For as long as anyone could remember, certain descendants from the tribe transformed into building-sized wolves in order to protect not just the people of La Push, but people of other surrounding areas too, from their natural enemies.

 _Vampires_.

As kids, we'd all heard the legends of the tribe. But, it was honestly safe to say that no one ever expected them to be anything but scary stories our parents had told us to keep us out of trouble and away from the woods. That was, until we were forced into the supernatural world they were based upon. Most of the time, participation wasn't a matter of choice, either.

My own parents had been forced into explaining all this to me when I'd been very young—probably a lot younger than they'd originally planned when it came to letting me in on the secret. From what I'd been told, while it had been a difficult decision on their part, it had also been too difficult for them to continue to keep me in the dark with so many members of the pack constantly coming and going out of our home all the time. Our house was considered to be "pack central".

I could vaguely remember how terrified I had felt, certain that because I knew everything, a vampire was sure to jump through my bedroom window at night and eat me for dinner. Now, the fear of vampires was very much still in tact, but for an entirely different reason. I didn't doubt the abilities of the pack to keep my family and me safe for a second. No, the most frightening thing of all was that it would only take one bloodthirsty, crazed immortal _thing_ to potentially tear my family right out from underneath me.

I shook my head, bringing myself back to the present. Balancing my pencil between my fingers, I attempted to do as my mother had asked. Still, as I stared down at the stark white paper before me, my mind quickly ran elsewhere and soon, I was seeing images of bright, crimson coloured eyes outlined in my notebook. Bringing my fingers to my forehead, I scrubbed at my skin, willing the images to disappear.

I willed time to go faster.

Like I had said before, it had been just an average Thursday night up until a little while ago. I'd been attempted to tackle this essay while the house had been full of pack members, when they'd been called out to deal with three nomad vampires. Since that very moment, my brain had completely stopped functioning. I knew that I wouldn't be able to concentrate through the tense atmosphere now radiating through my home until they had all returned safe and sound.

Glancing around the room briefly, I tried to remember the last time it had been so quiet around here. Perhaps, it was the eerie silence that filled our regularly loud home that was making it so much more difficult to cope. Vampire sightings had been few and far between for several years now; I wasn't used to this kind of thing happening. The silence was making me uneasy—sending a crippling bout of nausea flip-flopping around in the pit of my stomach. I clenched my teeth, trying to fight the urge to lose my lunch all over the kitchen floor.

Once more, my eyes found the window next to me. I was desperate to see even _one_ familiar figure break through the trees at the edge of our backyard. I wanted to feel that relief of knowing that they were all safe. I just wanted them home.

A gentle, calloused hand pulled my pencil from my clenched fist. I looked up in surprise to see my father's concerned brown eyes staring down at me.

Dad had been the alpha of the pack for a very long time. It was a title and a job I swore had been handmade with him in mind. He had been the first of his generation to phase, making him the ideal candidate to lead the pack. I may have been a little biased, but despite a few bumps in the road—of which I didn't know many details on—he'd been a successful leader.

Sometimes, he displayed this stern exterior, which seemed to really only come out when he was dealing with the pack or other tribal matters. Otherwise, he was a big softly that would do anything for the people he cared about. He was the one person I knew I could always go to for advice. I respected him a great deal.

He had long since retired from the pack—like the majority of his generation—but he was still very active in terms of decision making and other things that I honestly didn't really know anything about. Since he'd been an alpha for a long time, he held a very important position on the tribe council, acting somewhat of a buffer between the pack and their families, as well as the rest of La Push.

Meeting his gaze now, I could see the strength in his eyes. There wasn't much that fazed my father. My mother always told me that he found it hard to sit on the sidelines and if that was how he was feeling now, he hid his emotions very well. I knew he believed in the pack's ability just as much as I did. His 'lax body language seemed to stabilize my crazed emotions just a little.

"How's it going?" he asked gently. His eyes may have been on my blank homework page, but I knew that wasn't the only thing he was referring to.

I chewed on my bottom lip with the edge of my teeth, eyes falling to the table. "Um. Not so good."

I knew this kind of situation, had it been _normal_ , would have given me a sort of pass on this assignment from my teacher. But, considering I couldn't exactly tell my art teacher that I'd been unable to complete my essay due to the fact that the majority of my family had been out chasing vampires that were threatening the reservation, I was stuck trying to fight my way through it. I may not have lived the life of an average American teenager, but that didn't mean that my parents didn't take good grades seriously.

Dad's hand reached out to smooth some of my unruly, black hair away from my forehead and I leaned into his touch a little, closing my eyes. After a moment, he slipped the notebook from the table completely. I looked up at him, surprised.

"Leave this for now. You can worry about it later on," he murmured. "They shouldn't be too much longer, anyhow."

" _Sam_ ," Mom demanded, spinning around from her place at the stove to glare at my father.

Dad immediately looked sheepish, turning to meet her gaze. He walked over to her and pulled her under his arm. As he held her close, her anger seemed to melt away bit by bit.

As highly revolting as it was to watch my parents act all lovey-dovey with one another, the story behind their love was much more compelling.

 _Imprinting_ , as it was called, was the term used to describe the moment when a wolf found their soul mate.

Everyone told the tale a little differently, but from what I could gather, having an imprint was like having a true love, only about ten times stronger and about one hundred times more special. This was the person they were made to spend the rest of their lives with. A wolf would do anything for their imprint, be anything they needed them to. I had witnessed many imprinted couples and to me, it was one of the most beautiful things I'd ever seen.

However, my parents' story hadn't started out so effortlessly, so beautifully. In fact, it had all went to hell in a basket quite quickly.

Before my parents had met, Dad had actually been in a very serious relationship with my aunt—my mother's cousin. They'd been high school sweethearts. They had even been discussing getting married.

Then, Dad had phased. And he had met my mother. He had imprinted on her right away.

Mom and Auntie Leah had been best friends. The incident had driven a stake into their relationship for years. Leah had felt betrayed and had refused to speak to either one of my parents. And when she had phased into the pack—the first, and so far _only_ , girl in the history of the tribe to do so—things had become even more complicated and uncomfortable.

Three months before my parents' wedding, Auntie Leah had been scouting universities and _bam_ , she had imprinted. According to Mom, it had taken her a while to put herself out there again, to let herself get close to someone, but in the end, it had all paid off. Auntie Leah and Uncle John were two of the happiest people I'd ever met. They had been married for ten years now and had a six-year-old daughter, Chloe.

Despite all this, imprinting was once considered to be rare. That theory had been slightly blown out of proportion after nearly half the pack had imprinted in such a short period of time. Most of them had been lucky enough to do so as early as just a few months after their first time phasing, while others it had taken them a little longer. There were some that had yet to discover what imprinting was like, but in my opinion, there was an imprint for every wolf somewhere on this planet.

I'd be crazy to say that I didn't wish for my own imprint. Who didn't want an eternity of happiness? I was surrounded by imprint couples—I could _see_ how happy they all were. I wasn't stupid.

Now, as I watched Dad place a chaste kiss to my mother's tanned check, where three prominent scars marred her otherwise flawless skin, I wished for my own imprint even more.

Frantic footsteps pounded down the staircase and a moment later, my eighteen-year-old cousin, Claire, appeared in the doorway of the kitchen. I watched as she hurried towards the window, her eyes filled with purpose. She didn't utter a single word to any of us.

She had been holed up in her bedroom since the moment the boys had left and now, I could see why. She had a used Kleenex clutched in her fist and dried tracks of tears, blackened by her mascara, covering her cheeks. It was like none of us even existed as she pressed herself close to the window, her eyes watching the backyard intensely.

I wondered if that was how I had looked before my mother had told me to move.

Claire was really more of a sister than a cousin. My parents had become her legal guardians not long after her third birthday, when her own parents had been killed in a horrific car accident. Despite the tragic event that had pushed her in our direction, I was glad for her constant company. We were close in age and I was an only child. She was pushy and stubborn and often rude, but you just had to know how to handle her.

I'd had years of practice to perfect my skills.

Just as I was about to ask her what she was looking at, the door leading to the back porch swung open and the kitchen was immediately filled with laughter. Claire let out a high-pitched squeal and launched herself towards the group, whose voices buzzed with excitement. The once quiet house was now filled with the majority of the pack. They all spoke at once, talking at high intervals as they ribbed at one another and tried to relay what had happened while they'd been gone.

I studied their faces, their movements, trying to detect if any of them had been injured in any way. They had accelerated healing—courtesy of the wolf genes—but sometimes a hunt could still take a lot out of them. Thankfully, sans a few scratches here and there, they all seemed to be in one piece. The relief was overpowering.

They all seemed to be in high spirits, despite the fact that they had just been out, risking their lives. It was something I could never seem to wrap my mind around—how could they be at such _ease_ , when they could have been killed out there?

I suddenly felt overwhelmed. I slipped from my seat at the kitchen table and moved away from the crowd before they could descend on me. Someone called out my name, but I chose to ignore them as I felt my eyes begin to mist over.

I made my way into the living room as an onslaught of emotion hit me heavily, causing several tears to slip down my cheeks. I sank down against one of the couch cushions, breathing heavily. A large lump seemed to have formed in my throat.

I'd almost preferred it when I hadn't understood what was going on. When I'd been younger, I hadn't known the reason as to why they all seemed to disappear into the woods at strange times. At least back then, I hadn't known that they might not all come back every time they left. Having to wait around, feeling completely helpless—it was the worst kind of torture. I _hated_ not knowing—I _hated_ wondering which one of them I might never see again.

I _hated_ it.

"Lills?"

I looked up from where I'd been staring intently at the floor and began to wipe at my wet eyes furiously as I took in the source of the deep, yet soft voice that always seemed to have an effect on me. Like a magnet, fueled by an electric charge that sizzled in the air, I felt drawn to his presence.

For the first time since I'd watched them hurry out the back door and disappear behind the coverage of trees, I felt true relief. The lump in my throat lessened significantly as I caught sight of the tall figure that was somewhat blurry due to the moisture behind my eyes. When he hadn't been in the kitchen with the rest of them, I had immediately assumed the worst. But now, the relief seemed to weigh my entire body down and I found myself slumping even further into the couch, unable to hold myself up any longer. The tears fell at an even faster rate, for an entirely different reason.

The large, very _attractive_ boy standing at the edge of the room happened to be Brady Fuller. Brady was my best friend, the most constant person in my life. He was the one person I'd known for as long as I could remember. He'd been there through everything, was part of every significant memory I had. He was my rock, my support system. I honestly wasn't sure what I'd do without him.

His deep, dark brown eyes met my own, studying my face for a long moment—a true habit of his. He seemed to take in my tears in one moment and then he appeared on the couch beside me in the next. His long fingers curled around my elbow as he gently pulled me towards him. I fell against his broad side in one fluid movement.

I didn't get the chance to worry over the fact that I was crying, that I was completely making a fool of myself in front of him, because as I subconsciously pressed myself closer to his warmer-than-warm side, I lost all ability to think clearly. Surrounded by his familiar smell—a wonderful mixture of pine and sunshine that just smelt like _home_ —it was impossible not to feel at ease next to him. It took no time at all for my ever-present tears to soak the front of his already damp t-shirt and I held onto the frayed edge for good measure, trying to convince myself that he truly was _here_. He was okay.

"Hey," he soothed, his breath warm on the top of my head as his lips found purchase in my hair. His arms wound their way around me tightly. "Hey, it's okay."

He sounded slightly alarmed by my tears, which I couldn't really blame him for. I wasn't one for showing emotion out in the open—certainly _not_ like this. It had me wondering yet again why he bothered to put up with all my crazy antics in the first place. I was sure he had much more normal friends to spend his time with, instead of the ones that cried all over his clothes.

Yet, he didn't seem put off. He was here. And that was all that mattered to me.

I let myself cuddle even closer to his warm chest, unable to get past how relieved I was that he was all right. I worried over everyone when they were forced to go out unexpected, but I knew that if something ever happened to Brady, it would be ten times worse. I considered myself to be extremely lucky to have a best friend as wonderful as he was; I wasn't quite sure what I would do with myself if something ever happened to him.

I was still lost in my thoughts when a warm hand appeared under my chin, coaxing my face up so I was looking at him once more. I found myself absorbed within the swirls of brown in his eyes and almost didn't notice when the fingers from his other hand trailed across my cheek to catch the tears on my face, tracing fire across my skin. He sent me a soft smile and I tried not to shudder from the sensation that his touch brought.

"It's okay," he repeated softly. "Everything's okay, now."

It was—but only because he was here.

The thought made me blush and I ducked my face to hide in his shirt once more, but his hand prevented the movement. "Don't hide," he admonished gently. "I hate it when you hide from me."

I knew this. He told me so on a regular basis.

The blush seemed to deepen at his words, much to my embarrassment. "I'm not hiding."

He chuckled, the sound low and quiet. It sent shivers down my spine. "Sure, you're not," he said, placating me. "Now, tell me why you're all upset."

I gave a half-hearted shrug. I wasn't really sure that I wanted to admit to him that I'd been up to my eyeballs in worry about _him_ , specifically. The problem was—I wasn't the best liar. And, if there was one thing about Brady, it was that he didn't like being kept out of the loop from anything. If there was something he felt he needed to know, he was damn well going to find out, one way or another. Usually, I could keep my feelings bottled up inside, but when it came to Brady, the ability seemed to completely wash away.

I couldn't keep a single thing from him; no matter how hard I tried.

"Lills," he prompted finally, sounding slightly more serious than he'd been before.

I sighed heavily. It didn't take long for me to cave, but I chose my words carefully. "I was just worried about you—about _all_ of you."

Now, it was his turn to sigh. His eyes studied me once more, before his arms came back around me, pulling me into a tight embrace. He seemed just as content to maintain close contact as I was and I was glad. It was almost like we seemed to require the same physical reassurance that one another were safe. I knew without a doubt that I would let him hug me as tightly as he deemed suitable—for as long as he possibly wanted—without a single complaint. In fact, if we never moved again from this very spot, I would probably die a happy girl.

"There's no need for you to worry about anything," he murmured after a few moments of silence. "I'll always come back to you—no matter what."

Instantly, I pulled back to look at him directly. A feeling of desperation came across me and I had to swallow hard before I could manage to get any words out. "Do you promise that?" I asked quietly.

I wondered if he understood how I was feeling—how desperate I was for his words to be true.

Ever so softly, the pad of his thumb skimmed across my jaw, just barely touching my skin. There was a spark of electricity that seemed to disappear the moment his hand did, leaving me to wonder whether it was something he had felt too, or if it was just purely part of my overactive imagination.

Thankfully, he didn't seem bothered by my sudden need to hear his promise aloud. He held my gaze directly, his expression strong and serious as he spoke. "I promise, honey."

Brady was not one to give out false promises. He had always kept his word—he had never failed me before. So, rather than pressing the issue further, I accepted his words and closed the distance between us once more, closing my eyes against his broad shoulder. I was going to take as much advantage of his moment as I possibly could.

I wasn't entirely sure how long we'd sat there, just the two of us. My fingers bit into the collar of Brady's shirt and I was unable to let go even if I'd wanted to. I pressed myself as close to him as I possibly could and found that I really didn't care that I was halfway draped across his lap. I needed the reassurance—I needed the comfort that I'd only ever been able to get from him.

Brady kept me close, seeming to understand that I wasn't ready to let him go just yet. He murmured softly in my ear, replaying the events that had played out while he'd been in the forest, assuring me that I was safe; all the while his fingers ran up and down the length of my spine, comforting me even further. I had nearly fallen asleep, exhausted from worrying and wrapped up in his warmth, when a deep voice broke through the silent room.

"There you are, Bray."

I jumped in surprise, jolting away and startling Brady. He ran a hand over my hair as I settled on the cushion next to him, cheeks burning with embarrassment. We both turned to glare at the person standing in the doorway.

Collin Littlesea was my other best friend. I loved him to pieces, but he was not the sharpest tool in the tool shed—if you caught my gist. He made up for his lack of maturity and habit of making stupid decisions with his unwavering loyalty towards the people he most cared for. He didn't have a serious bone in his body and continued to act like a five-year-old on a daily basis. Yet, despite all his persistently irritating traits that tended to drive me up the wall, I couldn't imagine life without him.

As much as I would never admit it to his face, I did happen to enjoy his company from time to time. He was a very good friend and like Brady, he'd been a large part of my life for a very long time. However, if I ever had to choose between the two of them, there was no competition. And since the two of them seemed to go hand-in-hand ninety-five percent of the time, when I was finally able to get Brady all to myself, I was no mood for whatever ridiculous antics Collin had hidden up his sleeve. _Now_ , was Brady-time.

Though, I was sure that if I knew Collin as well as I thought I did, this was precisely why he'd come into the living room at this _exact_ moment. It was either he owed Brady some sort of payback, or my father had sent him in here to "supervise", in order to keep him from making a mess in the kitchen. Either way, it wasn't as if he could ever "lose" Brady's whereabouts when we were all in the same house—he had supernatural senses, after all.

Collin could not lie to save his life.

Despite the fact that I wanted to scream and shout at Collin for interrupting, I leapt up from the couch to give him the hug I knew he deserved. I was glad he was safe, considering he'd been out there too, fighting the danger. What kind of friend would I be if I didn't show that? Besides, the smile that graced his face in response to my action was enough to stunt my irritation for the time being.

He wrapped me up in a tight hug, squeezing me playfully, before he dropped a kiss on the top of my head. "Hey, you," he greeted softly.

"What do you want Collin?" Brady asked unhappily, once his best friend had released me.

Collin shrugged innocently. A taunting grin appeared on his face he looked at Brady. "Just wondering what you guys were up to."

Brady stood up next to me, towering over me as he pulled me back against his chest, wrapping his arms around the top of my shoulders. At first, I was surprised, but one look at the growing grin on Collin's face told me that this was Brady's way to hide his expression from me. While I didn't appreciate it, the fact that I got to stay in close proximity to him sort of made up for it for the time being.

"Don't—"

"So, Bray, when do I get _my_ Lilly-cuddle time?"

I was immediately confused my Collin's suggestive tone, but before I could turn to look at Brady, hoping he'd be able to shed some light on the subject, he had carefully shoved me towards the couch. I caught myself on the arm, as I watched his large frame begin to waver, his body vibrating from head to toe. His teeth were clenched and his brown eyes had begun shifting from brown to almost black, a telltale sign that he was on the losing side of the battle to his anger.

I didn't understand what had just occurred between the two of them, but whatever Collin had been implying had obviously struck at nerve with Brady. I didn't like it, but before I could call interference, the two of them were out of the room and tearing towards the kitchen. I hurried towards the doorway, trying to follow after them as they barreled past everyone and hurried out the back door. My father reached out to grasp my shoulder, keeping me from going after them.

Even after the door had slammed shut, I could still hear them yelling. You didn't need heightened senses to hear the words Brady called Collin and the taunting words that the latter said back. It wasn't long before the words were replaced by growls and the other familiar sounds that accompanied the boys when they phased into their wolf forms.

It only took a few moments before everyone in the kitchen continued to go on as if nothing had happened. It wasn't as if this didn't happen on a regular basis around here, but it wasn't something that normally happened between Brady and Collin and that was what worried me.

"Sit," Dad ordered me.

I hesitated a moment, before a chair was pulled out for me and I found myself sitting stiffly on the edge of the seat. My eyes didn't leave the screen door, where I wished I could see what was happening. I could feel the panic turning in my stomach.

I'd just gotten them all back.

"Lilly looks like she's gonna hurl."

Dad smoothed my hair. "They're going to be—"

Mom let out a sudden gasp. "Boys!" She hurried towards the back door. "Would you get _away_ from the flowerbeds?" She spun back around to glare at my father. "Sam!"

Grumbling under his breath about rotten werewolves and their rotten tempers, my father made his way towards the backyard. Despite the fact that the growls were increasing in volume and my mother was threatening to make them replace ever single flower they ripped up, Dad took his time to put on his running shoes and make his way down the porch steps.

Because, despite how concerned I was, this was nothing unusual when you lived with a bunch of shapeshifters.

"At least they didn't wreck the wall this time," Dad grumbled on his way out.

I rolled my eyes.

Welcome to my life.

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 **Please review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Well, are you guys still with me? I certainly hope so. It was definitely not my intention to be this long with updating and I apologize. I just started a new job that has me working some crazy hours and I've been trying to finish up a college course, so time has not been in my** **favour! I have a few days off this week so I'm hoping I can try to majorly catch up on some writing. I hope you guys can forgive me.**

 **I found this chapter hard to write. It wasn't anything special, but the details within are important for what is to come. I hope you enjoy it and I hope you guys can forgive me for making you wait FOREVER. I have high hopes for this story. So, please, read and enjoy :)**

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The grocery store in the small town of Forks, Washington was busy that Saturday morning. As I dragged my fuller-than-full cart along the aisles, I was forced to fight my way around people with gritted teeth. This was not how I had planned on spending the first day of my weekend.

As I hurried along, a package of baked goods seemed to fly into my cart from absolutely nowhere and I stumbled in surprise. The cart skidded off to the side and rammed into the shelf of cereal that an elderly lady was perusing. She glared over at me as I righted myself.

"Sorry," I muttered, before I hurried to the end of the aisle.

A deep chuckle sounded behind me.

I stopped at the end of the aisle, turning to glare at the large figure that had caught up to me. I couldn't help but stare up at him with an exasperated expression, knowing most of the trouble I had gone through while shopping had been because of him. He stared back at me with an unabashed look on his tanned face.

When my mother had shaken me awake at the crack of dawn this morning to beg me to do the grocery shopping for her this morning, I had been unable to say no. I could see the look of panic on her face, knowing she had her hands full with all the other preparations for the tribal meeting at the cliffs tonight. While I had planned on sleeping in this morning, there was absolutely no way I could refuse to help her.

Unfortunately, she had failed to mention that it would be Collin accompanying me to the store. La Push had a small grocery store, but it had little selection compared to the one in Forks—a place I was not allowed to visit without a "body-guard". Forks was known for more vampire activity than La Push, considering part of the Cullen clan still lived there and my father was as overprotective as a mother bear.

The boys of the pack detested shopping nearly as much as I did. It was obvious that this chore was not Collin's first choice, but when it came to tribal meetings, my mother tended to hand out jobs to everyone without expecting any question in response. Hence, how I got stuck shopping with Collin.

Collin may have been one of my best friends, but I had yet to be able to go out with him in public without being completely humiliated. Today's trip seemed to follow in the same sort of style. Collin may have been sent to keep an eye on me, but I was the one who ended up babysitting him.

"Really?" I exclaimed, glancing down at the heavy cart. "Donuts? No where on my mother's list does it say donuts, Collin."

He shrugged, lifting one shoulder as he smirked. "So, I'll eat them in the truck on the way home. No one will ever know."

I scrubbed at my forehead with my fingers, counting to ten under my breath. I didn't have the patience for his shenanigans this morning. I didn't have the patience for anything, honestly.

While Saturdays were nice because I got a day off from school, they were truly one of my least favourite days of the week. Saturdays were Brady's long days for patrol. From six in the morning to three in the afternoon, he was on duty. They broke from lunch for fifteen minutes at noon, before he was back in the forest to protect the tribe.

Usually, by the time his shift was done, he was so exhausted that he would go home and sleep until late evening. Once in a while, he would come over for dinner after a long shift, but most of the time, he spent the rest of his Saturday catching up on sleep.

I spent my entire Saturday moping because I didn't get to see him.

Don't get me wrong—I understood that _someone_ had to take the long shift. It was just supremely disappointing that for one of the few days I was off during the week, I barely got to see him. When I was younger, the days I didn't get to see him didn't seem that bad. I still missed him like crazy, but I always had one of the other pack members or my parents to keep me occupied. But, now that I was older and that I felt closer to Brady, the days without him were hard.

I refused to tell him how much I missed him those days, knowing it would just make him feel guilty. Protecting the tribe was part of his job and there was nothing I could do to change that. But, more and more often I found myself feeling strange when I didn't see him for prolonged periods of time. I couldn't sleep and my head pounded. I didn't feel like doing anything.

It scared me how much he was starting to affect me. I mean—we were only friends, so why did I feel like this? I'm sure Brady wasn't spending his patrol shift pining over the fact that he didn't get to spend the day with me. So, why did I feel the way I did?

A warm palm found my chin, coaxing my face upwards until I was staring into Collin's muddy, brown eyes. I blinked profusely, feeling my cheeks burn.

"You okay?" he murmured. All joking manner was gone and the concern was obvious on his face.

I gave a sharp nod, forcing a grin. "Yup, fine."

It was obvious he didn't believe me. Without another word, he reached around me to grab the cart from my hands before he started down the aisle once more. Only did he glance behind when he realized I wasn't following.

"C'mon," he said.

The rest of the trip went smoothly. I finished off my mother's list without much trouble and Collin didn't try to put anything else into the cart. I knew my bad mood had rubbed off on him and I knew he wasn't going to keep his thoughts to himself about it. Still, as we approached the check-out line, I felt strangely out of it, like my body was here but my mind was elsewhere. When the cashier told me our total, I jumped at the sound of his voice.

"That'll be $157.48," he said.

As I flashed my father's credit card, used specifically for pack things like getting groceries, I could feel the cashier's gaze on me. Immediately, I was uncomfortable. I could feel his eyes look me up and down, not bothering to hide the fact that he was blatantly checking me out.

A warm hand appeared on the small of my back the moment the machine beeped. Collin grabbed the credit card and handed it to me, his body hiding me from view. I kept my gaze on the floor, moving towards the cart.

The cashier's confidence seemed to sink as he realized Collin was staring at him.

"H-have a nice day," he stuttered as he handed Collin the receipt.

"Yeah," Collin snapped. "Right."

I was quickly ushered towards the parking lot.

Part of the reason I put up with being carted around with these boys wherever I went was precisely because of moments like these. I was not the type of person that thrived in situations that made me uncomfortable. I didn't like confrontation and I most certainly didn't do well striking up conversations with strangers. Most of the pack, especially Brady and Collin, never let me feel like my back was against a wall if they could help it.

Sometimes, though, they let their tempers get the best of them. As I watched Collin heave the bags into the back of Uncle Jared's truck, I could see that he was unhappy. I was thankful that he had managed to keep it together inside the store, but now I felt guilty that he was in such a foul mood. I wished I was able to stand up for myself better, then maybe these guys wouldn't get so uptight all the time.

"Col—" I began softly.

"I don't want to hear it, Lills," he said, not looking up as he slammed the tailgate shut. "Get in."

Biting my lip, I walked slowly to the passenger seat without a word in return.

The ride back to La Push was silent. Collin had turned the radio off the moment he had started the engine and had yet to say a single thing. He pushed the speed limit slightly and I could see his hands tensing around the steering wheel as he maneuvered the damp roads. I didn't have the courage to breach the topic once more. My eyes followed the trees, wishing more and more that I could see Brady through them.

Before I knew it, we were home. Collin pulled into the driveway the same time the porch door opened. I got out slowly, smiling at the younger pack members who hurried to help with the bags. As I was distracted, Collin stomped towards the backyard, arms trembling.

Frowning, I made to follow him, but stopped short when a hand found my wrist. Uncle Jared and Aunt Kim's son, Austin, stared down at me with stormy eyes. "Come on inside, Lills."

I struggled against his grip. "But, Collin—"

"Collin will get over it," he assured me.

Feeling defeated, I trudged towards the house, letting the boys deal with the bags. Any chance of my mood lightening today was gone. All I wanted was to lock myself in my room and wait for tomorrow, when I knew the day would be better than this one. I kicked my shoes off in the pile at the door, before I followed the sound of voices into the living room.

Several set of eyes followed me as I slouched down in the last available spot on our spacious couch. I tried to ignore them, focusing on the baseball game on TV. But, when a foot nudged mine, I knew I wasn't going to get away with not speaking that easily.

Claire was watching me with concern from the opposite side of the couch, where she was cuddled into Quil's side. Quil had imprinted on my cousin the very first day her parents had ever brought her to La Push. They'd been inseparable ever since. Seeing them together now, I couldn't help but feel jealous. I worked to squash the foreign and unexplainable feeling quickly.

"How was shopping?" she asked.

"Torturous," I replied, receiving several knowing laughs in response.

Quil's laugh rumbled the couch. "Aw, c'mon, Collin's not that bad."

Quil might have been my cousin's soul mate, but he and I did not get along overly well. He was the type of person that liked to know everyone's business. He was a button-pusher and had no sense of when it was appropriate to let things go. I didn't know how Claire put up with him. He drove me absolutely crazy.

"I don't know," Will Lahote—Rachel and Paul's middle son—input. "I've been shopping with Collin before. It's not an easy task."

Quil then launched into a story about a time Collin got kicked out of the Forks library. It was enough to distract everyone long enough for me to slip out of the room and into the kitchen.

My mother had every surface in the kitchen covered with items for the barbecue and yet she was still at the stove, cooking away. The ceiling fan spun lightly, wafting the smell of cookies and muffins around the room. I smiled slightly as everyone looked up at my arrival.

"There you are," Mom greeted. "Thank-you for going out for me this morning."

I gave a half-shrug, snagging a muffin as I sat down at the table.

"Did everything go okay?" she asked, eyes searching my face. I knew I was being uncharacteristically silent.

I nodded. "It was fine."

Aunt Kim, who was frosting cupcakes, grinned. "How was Collin?"

It was obvious everyone knew what he was like. I wondered if they expected me to be in a foul mood when I returned. I bet they didn't expect it to be because of an entirely different reason, though.

"He was grouchy," I admitted.

Mom looked surprised. Her eyes were surveying me. "He didn't take his bad mood out on you, did he?"

She was always worried I would get hurt being around the boys all the time. I was fairly small, only about five-six, which I supposed was average height for a girl, but it was basically midget height with all these wolf-boys around. They could cart me around like I was a feather.

My parents rarely ever fought and when they did, it was almost always about my safety. Dad liked me to spend my time with the pack, because it almost always guaranteed my safety, Mom was always concerned that one of the boys wouldn't be able to hold in their temper and I would get in the way. Usually, Dad won in the end. He trusted the boys and Mom trusted him.

I was smart enough to know when they were on the losing side of their control. Today at the store hadn't been anything like that. Collin wasn't going to phase—he was just plain old angry. And it had only escalated when the cashier hadn't been able to keep his eyes to himself.

"No, Mom," I said softly.

Aunt Kim patted my mother on the shoulder.

"Where is Collin now?"

I shrugged. "Not sure."

Now, Mom was the one who looked unhappy. Her hands found her hips as she looked at me. "He was supposed to take you down to the beach when you two got back, so you could help Rachel set up."

I nibbled on a blueberry that had fallen from the muffin I was picking apart. "I don't know what to tell you."

Kim, always the person trying to keep my mother from fretting too much, straightened up. "Well, Austin is here. He can take her down with some of the food."

I opened my mouth to protest. "I'd rather just—"

Mom flapped her oven mitt at me, shaking her head. "No, that's a great idea. You could use some fresh air, Lilly."

"But, Mom—"

"Austin, can you come grab these burgers and take them to the truck, please?"

Apparently, my fate for this afternoon had been decided.

First Beach was lit up like a Ferris wheel on the fourth of July. Someone had strung lanterns along the trees and the fire blazed higher than I had ever seen it, mixes of oranges and yellows muddled together into one giant flame. The crackle of the wood and the soft crash of the waves along the shore did nothing to soothe me, however. I settled up higher against the cliff wall, watching the party from above.

The afternoon had passed rather quickly. I had spent it helping set up the food with a few of my aunts. Before I knew it, the evening was upon as and the shoreline was crowded with most of the La Push population. It hadn't taken me long to take refuge on the small shelf of rock further away from the noise, where I could sit and think in peace for once in my life.

I had yet to see Collin since this morning and while I was no longer put off with the fact that he had totally ditched me, I was annoyed with the fact that he hadn't come to apologize to me yet. We had fought before, over ridiculous things mostly, and we were always quick to forgive one another after.

I rested my chin on my knees, watching the water. It was calm tonight, which was surprising. Normally in the early spring, the waves were horrendous, fighting for control as the wind blew. But, tonight, the air was warm and the waves were small. It was so abnormal it was a tiny bit discerning.

Despite the fact that I was trying everything in my power not to, my eyes constantly scanned the party for Brady. I had hoped that once he had been done his patrol shift for today that he would have come down to the party. But, I had yet to catch sight of his familiar figure. It was just another disappointing thing to add to my disappointing day.

I felt unsettled. I had never felt so attached to someone before. It was almost unhealthy and while I felt like I had to discuss it with someone, I had no clue whom to approach. If I brought it up with my mom, she would get ridiculously giddy and immediately tell my dad. If I talked to Claire, the entire pack would know before I even finished telling her.

I figured it was just something I would have to figure on my own. Normally, I would go to Brady with my problems. He always understood and he never laughed at my fears. But, this was certainly not a scenario that I could speak with him about.

The trees on edge of the cliff wiggled in the wind, leaves rattling together. The temperature seemed to have dropped within a few minutes and I rubbed at goose bumps that appeared on my bare arms. Where had the warm air gone to so quickly?

A twig snapped behind me and I was on my feet without thinking. I stumbled on loose gravel, catching myself on a sharp section of rock. I grimaced as I struggled to my feet.

Glancing into the trees was a mistake, but also my saving grace. It didn't take me long to find the pair of eyes that stared back at me and I knew without a single doubt that they didn't belong to anyone in the pack. I gasped, hands trembling as I backed away from the trees, closer and closer to the edge.

Just as my foot slipped once more, a pair of arms caught me around the torso. I struggled for a minute, kicking at them, screaming at them to get away. Only when a soft voice broke through the sound of my heart beating in my ears did I stop fighting.

"It's me," Brady assured me. His grip tightened as my legs failed to hold my body up. "It's me, honey."

I turned, sobbing into his t-shirt clad chest as I trembled. "Oh my God," I cried.

His fingers splayed out across my shoulder blades, his lips on the side of my head as he reassured me. "You're safe, you're safe," he soothed.

I shook my head and stepped away from him, still shaking. "No, Bray—Bray there was something _in_ there."

My eyes found the trees again, where I had definitely seen a pair of bright eyes looking back in my direction. They were gone now, but I knew they had been there.

And, I knew nothing good would come from it.

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	3. Chapter 3

**Hey everyone. Sorry for the late update. I've gone through some very tough things lately and just haven't been in the right state of mind to do any writing. I had completely forgotten that I had this chapter already done. So, sorry again and hope you're all still with me. Thanks :)**

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The lights inside my house seemed supremely bright as I sat huddled beneath a blanket on the couch. The living room was loud as questions were voiced and concerns were shouted from every direction. I felt numb as I stared into the steam blowing up from the cup of hot chocolate my mother had set on the table before me.

Suddenly, the room quieted. The tall figure of my father kneeled in front of me. His hand fell on my knee, squeezing it softly to get my attention. I looked up at him with blurry eyes.

"Are you sure, honey?" he asked softly. "Are you sure something was there?"

Tears formed in my eyes, distorting my vision. It was well past midnight now and I was exhausted, having answered question after question once I had explained what I'd saw on the cliffs. Instantly, the meeting and the bonfire had been called off. I wasn't sure what excuse the tribal elders had come up with for all the regular people attending, but a few hours later, I found myself sitting on the couch in the living room as I once again tried to prove that I wasn't completely senile.

"You don't believe me," I stated, trembling. "I saw them, Dad. There was something there."

An arm fell over my shoulder then and I was pulled against Brady's warm side. He'd been silent for most of the night once he'd found me. He had refused to leave my side and I was relieved. I needed him right now, more than ever before.

"Why don't you believe me?" I whispered.

Brady brushed his hand over my hair as he leaned down to comfort me. I fell into his embrace as I tried to staunch my tears against his shirt. It seemed like all I did lately was cry when he was around. He must think I'm crazy.

"Shh," he soothed.

I pulled away from, anger blazing. " _No_ —" I exclaimed, shocking several people. "There _was_ something there. Two bright eyes staring at me and they were coming towards me. I _swear_."

I was pretty much hysterical now and I think Brady had enough. He moved, as if he were about to get up and leave the room, most likely to get away from me and my emotions and I shifted my weight, not wanting to be in his way. I was surprised, when he didn't leave, but instead reached down to plop me into his lap, blanket it all. His broad shoulder blocked my face from view and his lips were at my ear, his soft voice the most comforting thing I'd witnessed this entire night.

"Calm down, sweetheart," he pleaded. "I promise you that everything's okay now."

I shook my head against him, struggling against his grip for a moment. "No, Bray, I saw them—I did."

He nodded against my forehead, lips finding purchase on my skin for the briefest moment before he shushed me again. "I know you did, I know."

"I'm not crazy," I mumbled against his chest.

His warm hand ran up and down my back. "Of course you aren't, honey. Shh, it's okay."

I heard Dad sigh before us before he straightened up. "Okay, let's get two groups going, then. And someone needs to call Jake."

Uncle Jake had taken over the alpha duties once my father had retired. He was younger and the rightful person for the job, if historical standards meant anything. He lived on the bordering edge of La Push and Forks with his imprint, Renesmee—who everyone called Nessie—and their four-year-old son, Toby. Aunt Nessie was half-human, half-vampire; therefore I didn't see her all that often. The three of them had gone up to Alaska a few weeks ago to visit Aunt Nessie's family and had yet to return from their trip.

Dad had stepped in for the moment, calling the shots. He barked orders out to everyone standing around, before he glanced down at Brady and I. Brady's chest rumbled as he spoke. "I'm not leaving her," he said, voice ringing out clear.

Surprised, since I had never heard him speak to my father in such a way before, I was tempted to glance up and to watch the stare down begin. As a precaution, my fingers wrapped themselves up in Brady's sweatshirt. If it came down to it, I would throw an absolute fit that would rival any toddler. But, there was no way I could let Brady out of my sight right now.

"Sam," Uncle Embry called from the kitchen. "We've got enough for two groups already. Let him stay."

I watched Dad nod sharply. He glared at Brady once and then reached down to kiss the top of my head, smoothing my hair back gently. "I love you," he murmured to me. I didn't say anything as he walked towards the kitchen.

Mom made her presence known, then. "Brady, why don't you take her upstairs, okay? Will keep you updated."

Brady said nothing as he stood with me in his arms and headed for the stairs. I refused to let him go, crushing my face against his shoulder as I tried to hide my tired eyes from the light. It wasn't long before we were in my dark bedroom. Brady reached down to set me on my bed.

As he moved towards the door, I grasped his forearm. "Don't leave," I pleaded, slightly embarrassed that I was acting in such a manner. It wasn't like I could take the words back now.

He didn't laugh at my expense, like any one else might have in the given situation. Instead, he reached over to shut the door and then clambered back to the bed, sliding in next to me. A moment later, I found the covers tight around me, while Brady remained on the outside of the blankets. I had a slight déja vu moment of when I was younger and Brady had helped me fall asleep the times my parents couldn't get me to.

"I'm not going anywhere," he promised. He pulled me close, resting his chin on the top of my head. I closed my eyes and pressed my nose against his t-shirt.

"I'm scared," I admitted, shuddering a little. I wanted to continue talking, not afraid to tell him anything at this point, but my eyes kept closing on their own accord. My brain seemed to be more muddled than before.

Brady sighed, the noise deep and soft, before he kissed my forehead once more. I felt his arms come around me and his hands brushed up and down my back over and over. "You don't have to be scared," he soothed. "I won't let anything happen to you."

"I know what I saw," I tried to tell him again. He had to believe me. Out of everyone, I needed him to.

He stroked back my unruly hair, holding me tighter. "I believe you," he murmured. "Why don't you try and sleep, sweetheart? I'll be right here."

I didn't want to. "Bray—"

"Shh," he murmured. "I've got you, Lills. Just sleep, honey."

My body seemed to give up on fighting then. Between Brady's warmth and the circles his fingers were pressing softly into my spine, I didn't have a hope of staying awake. It wasn't long before I couldn't keep my eyes open any longer. My head settled in the crook between Brady's neck and his shoulder and I heaved a deep sigh.

I felt his lips in my hair again. "I love you, Lilly. Everything's going to be okay."

I wasn't able to stay awake long enough to utter a response.

The next day, I awoke alone. The sun was bright, shining through the cracks between the blinds on my window and my legs were tangled in my blankets. My eyes felt dry and sore and my head felt like someone had stuffed cotton in it. Still, as the voices downstairs reached my ears, I decided that it would be a good idea to get up.

As I dressed into comfortable clothing, I couldn't help but think of last night. I had been absolute mess—an embarrassing and blubbering mess and I had no idea what to do to fix it. I could only imagine what Brady must have thought and God only knows if I had totally ruined everything because of it. Taking a deep breath, I tightened my hair into a ponytail and threw on one of Brady's old hoodies before I trudged downstairs.

The house was full, as per usual. Mom was at the stove cooking breakfast and Collin, Seth, Quil, and Brady accompanied Dad at the table. I refused to meet any gazes as I found myself center of attention and stumbled over to the fridge to buy myself some time.

Mom slid down the counter to kiss my forehead as I searched for the orange juice. "How did you sleep?" she asked.

"Fine," I replied as I poured myself a glass.

She rubbed her thumb across my cheek before she nodded. "Okay," she said. "Sit. Breakfast will be ready soon."

I picked my chair strategically, avoiding the open one between Brady and Collin in favour of the one next to Uncle Seth. My mother's cousin smiled down at me softly once I was seated and pressed a kiss to the top of my head. I leaned my head against his arm, keeping my gaze on the table. Thankfully, he didn't seem to mind.

The conversation seemed to flow more awkwardly now. I knew everyone was surprised that I hadn't sat next to Brady and that the chair had been left open just for me. But, I couldn't do it. I couldn't face him, not after how I had acted yesterday.

Breakfast passed quickly and when my mother gave me the option to go shopping with Claire and her this afternoon, I jumped on the chance. I could see the hurt in Brady's eyes and guilt stabbed at my heart, but I needed to get away for the day. I needed a distraction.

Shopping was just as terrible as I expected to be. My cousin attacked every single store in Port Angeles, trying on every single pink dress that existed. She modeled them for my mother and Quil, who had tagged along with us for whatever reason, while I pretended to be interested. When she finally picked one—the very first one she tried on, I might add—I thanked all the Gods above. By the time we were on our way home, it was after dinner.

The boys were playing a game of football when Quil pulled into the driveway. He hopped out quickly, grinning and shouting that he wanted to be placed on the winning team. Claire shook his head at his antics.

I headed towards the front porch, eager to escape to the solitude of my bedroom for the evening to work on some homework. Usually, I loved playing football with the boys. Tonight, I just wanted to be alone.

"Lills." A deep voice stopped me in my tracks.

Brady looked like I felt. There were dark circles under his eyes and his hair stood up in a million directions, like he'd been running his hands through it all afternoon. He wasn't wearing a shirt and I had to fight to keep my eyes off his chest, which was bright with sweat from the football excursion. Still, as awful as he looked, he gave me all of his attention, his expression hopeful.

I knew exactly what he wanted.

"I'm sorry," I told him, cheeks red. "I shouldn't have acted like that last night.

Instead of looking relieved like I thought he would, he looked confused. "What do you mean?"

I sighed. He was really going to make me spell it out. "I shouldn't have freaked out and refused to let you leave last night. I know it's not your job to make sure I'm okay all the time and I should have been able to handle it myself. I'm sorry."

He stood before me for a moment, before he laughed, shaking his head. Then, I found myself in his sweaty embrace, his body still shaking with laughter. "Glad I amuse you," I muttered against his shoulder.

He pulled away a second later and kissed the top of my head, eyes still bright. "You don't amuse me," he said.

I crossed my arms. "You've got a funny way of showing it."

Suddenly, his hands enclosed my own and I was caught off guard for the time being. His fingers squeezed mine before he spoke again. "Lills," he murmured. "I wasn't looking for an apology. You didn't do anything wrong last night. I was the one who was going to say sorry to you. I should have been there when you woke up this morning."

I raised an eyebrow. "Oh. So, you aren't mad?" I felt utterly confused.

He chuckled again. "No, honey. Far from it."

I felt myself sag with relief. All day I had fretted over what I was going to say to him; how I was going to get him to forgive me. And he wasn't even mad in the first place. I felt like an even bigger idiot.

"There is one thing you did say that I don't agree with, though," he said, still holding my hands.

"What's that?" I asked.

"It is most definitely my job to make sure you are okay all the time. And I never want you to think that you have to handle things by yourself. I mean, what are best friends for, right?"

I felt like someone had pounded my heart with a mallet. Of course, what Brady was saying was supremely sweet, but it was the _way_ he said it that made me disappointed. Part of me felt like perhaps being best friends with Brady wasn't enough to satisfy my emotions. But, how on earth was I supposed to tell him that?

So, I forced the feelings down and forced a smile. "Okay. Thanks, Bray."

"Any time, kiddo," he replied, squeezing my shoulder. "C'mon and play some football. You can be on my team and I'll block for you."

As he jogged away and I hurried to stay in pace with him, I knew one thing was for sure.

I was falling for my best friend. And I had no clue what to do.

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	4. Chapter 4

**Hey guys! So sorry for the wait! I've been super busy with work and haven't had much** **energy or motivation to do any writing. And THEN, when I finally got this chapter finished, I could not for the life of me get it to upload onto Fanfiction. SO IRRITATING.**

 **Anyways, hope you're all still with me. The reviews and your support mean everything.**

 **Enjoy.**

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I swore that time was going in slow motion.

It was the third time I had looked at the clock at the front of my math classroom in the past fifteen minutes and I couldn't believe that such a short period of time had gone by. I felt like I'd been sitting in this rickety, uncomfortable plastic chair all afternoon and I wanted no part of it any longer.

Math class was easily my least favourite one of the day. Not only was my teacher strict, grumpy, and stuck in her old ways, but I also _sucked_ at math. Numbers were in no way my friend.

The past few days had gone by much too slowly for my liking. After the crazy weekend at the beach, the pack had been left on high alert. My father had taken over delegating duties, making sure the entire reservation was head-to-toe protected by the pack. He'd finally gotten a hold of Uncle Jake, who was on his way back from Alaska, sans Aunt Nessie and baby Toby, who he'd left behind under the protection of Nessie's family. Despite everything going on, I was truly excited to see my favourite uncle.

I glanced at the small row of windows behind my left shoulder when I was sure my teacher was otherwise occupied. From there, I could hardly see the school parking lot through all the mist. Our school was close to Second Beach, so often, on a cooler day like today; the mist took over the visibility. It was precisely the reason as to way anyone rarely visited Second Beach. We all preferred First Beach when it came to any sort of recreation.

In all honesty, I was just completely exhausted. I hadn't been sleeping well—my mind full of discombobulated images of wolves, sullen eyes hidden in the woods, and an overall bloodshed of my entire family. I seriously couldn't remember the last time I'd slept through the entire night. All I seemed to do was toss and turn all night long. I would end up giving up on sleep long before the sun had actually rose, way earlier than the rest of my family members, and had taken to sitting in my bedroom feigning slumber until it was time to go downstairs for breakfast. I hoped that I was fooling my parents with my antics, but I also knew that I could only hide the bags under my eyes for so long.

I missed Brady. I had grown used to him being around over the weekend and now that it was over and I was stuck behind the books, I wasn't handling the distance very well. I didn't understand it and the intense emotions at the source of my feelings scared me, a _lot_. It couldn't be healthy to be so attached to someone. But, I was.

I kept trying to convince myself to ignore the feelings, the urges. Brady was an _adult_ , a werewolf, and frankly, absolutely beautiful. He was completely and utterly out of my league on so many levels it wasn't even funny. I was just lucky enough to have him in my life. Why couldn't that be enough for me? Why did I have to fall in love with him?

Admitting it was shocking enough and it wasn't even like I was admitting the words aloud. I was in _love_ with my best friend. And I had absolutely no clue what I was supposed to do about it.

I did know, however, that telling Brady was the complete _last_ thing I would do. That much was clear.

When the shrill of the bell went, signaling that the school day, and this torturous math class, was finally over, I nearly toppled out of my chair at the sound. I ducked my head, trying to ignore the curious stares in my direction over all the noise I was making. Gathering my books, I hurried out of the classroom, wanting nothing more than to go home and hide away from the world.

At my locker, I struggled with my backpack. I was certain that my teachers were conspiring together, judging by how much homework I had. My textbooks fought for room inside my bag and eventually, I couldn't hold it up any longer. It slipped to the floor, sending a fan of loose papers across the linoleum.

My shoulders slumped in defeat. "Great."

I was too busy collecting papers to notice any one else in the quiet hallway, until they were directly in front of me. A dark boot stomped down on my pages, dangerously close to my fingertips. Crouched down on the ground, I stumbled back in surprise, eyes rising to the person before me.

It was as if the Gods were against me, today, because the figure above me was the absolute last person I wanted to see. I could feel the colour draining from my face and my fingers trembled as I worked to quickly get to my feet, papers forgotten.

Griffin Syers was not my biggest fan and the feeling was pretty mutual. He was a senior, in the same grade as my cousin, Claire, and essentially, had no business bothering a junior. But, as captain of the football team and one of the more popular people, he gave off the impression that he ran by his own rules. He considered himself entitled, for whatever reason.

And, he absolutely hated me.

His opinion on myself was not something new. The hatred had been prevalent for a long time now and although I was unsure of his exact reasoning as to why, I was pretty positive that it came from _who_ I was in this tribe.

While Uncle Jake, for all intents and purposes, was the "Chief" of La Push, my father still held a very important role in the tribe. He worked diligently with the rest of the elders to ensure that everything ran smoothly around here and whenever Uncle Jake was away, he looked after all pack things. Without him, it would be a very messy mixture around this place.

With that being said, Dad and Uncle Jake worked hard to modernize things around here. They still abided by a lot of the older, original customs established by our ancestors, but they worked hard to adapt La Push to more modern capabilities. 99% of the tribe was completely onboard—not to mention, thankful—for their efforts. But, as always, there was always that 1% that had to make things difficult.

The Syers family was the majority of that 1%.

"What do you want, Griffin?" I asked quite sharply. It was probably the wrong thing to say.

He laughed, his hulking frame shaking. "Oh," he said, sounding amused. "Does the little sheep have a voice of her own now?"

This remark was also nothing new. I was often ridiculed—by disgruntled classmates—about my affiliation with the pack. Of course, outsiders had absolutely no idea that my family members morphed into giant wolves when they weren't hitting the books, but they knew they were different and that was enough. I was always with them, so I was then deemed guilty by association. Most people just automatically assumed that I let others make decisions for me and not that I had my own brain and _chose_ to be with my friends because I wanted to be.

Hence, where the sheep comment came in.

"Can we have a rain check on this get together?" I asked wearily. "I'm late and not in the mood."

I honestly should have just kept my mouth shut. I watched two figures skulk out of the shadows further down the hallway and felt myself move further away from Griffin. I was used to Griffin's abuse—inappropriate comments in passing, elbows to the side in the hallway—it was normal. I could handle it; I'd _been_ handling it.

Griffin and two other football giants I could _not_ handle.

"Listen," I murmured as I backed up further. "Don't you guys have something better to do?"

Griffin smirked and the sly grin that formed across his broad face sent shivers down my spine. The word _grimy_ came to mind. Griffin Syers was a grimy person in every way possible.

"Nope," he said. He turned to look at his entourage. "You guys?"

Both shook their heads, arms crossed over their chests. They stood on either side of him.

He suddenly moved much too close for my liking and I tried to back away, but my shoulder blades bumped the hard surface of the lockers. I had absolutely no way to escape. I was quickly wracking every inch of my brain, trying to remember any sort of self-defense the pack boys had tried to drill into my mind. Of course, I hadn't listened in the slightest, convinced back then that I wouldn't ever need it.

God, I wished I could remember.

Griffin was so close that I could smell his putrid smell and his warm breath fawned my face in the most nauseating way. My hands were clenched together so tightly that my fingers were numb. My legs wiggled in attempts to keep my body in an upright position.

I was a wimp in all sense of the word, but I couldn't help it. I always had one of the pack in situations like these and I supposed having them to keep me afloat was fantastic when they were around, but definitely not so good at this moment. I was weak and frightened and while I hung out with a bunch of werewolves, I definitely wasn't one of them. These _normal_ , high school boys outweighed me—by a lot.

"You listen here, Uley," Griffin sneered, spitting his words in my face. "You don't belong at this school, just like your family doesn't belong on this reservation. You freaks think you can change things around here and everyone will follow suit like you're royalty or something, but you're _wrong_. Your dad tried to do the exact same thing when he was in high school and it didn't work." He leaned even closer. "And as long as I'm here, it's not going to work for you."

Just as I was about to tell him that I had no clue what he was talking about, there was a loud shout further down the hall. Griffin jumped away from me like he'd been electrocuted and my body slumped and shook in relief. I watched in pure elation as two familiar figures loped down the hall towards us.

I'd never been so happy to see Will and Austin than I was at this moment. Though we weren't close friends by any means, I considered them both to be family and if they were going to get me out of this uncomfortable situation, I would happily kiss the ground they walked on for the rest of their lives.

"Get the hell away from her," Will snapped.

Griffin rose back up to full height, but he had nothing on Will. The latter towered over him the moment he arrived and had no problem swarming Griffin's personal space in the exact way he'd been doing to me.

Will Lahote had directly inherited his father's famous temper and while he was pretty good at keeping himself under wraps, I knew he wouldn't hesitate to utilize his strength when it came to Griffin. I was thrilled to be on the side I was and I pitied any one who messed with these two boys, especially after everything that was going on.

Griffin's eyes flashed dangerously. "Oh, look, see Uley, I knew your body guards wouldn't stray too far. They might miss out on something." He turned to face me once more, pretending to ignore Will. "This has nothing to do with you. Go hangout with your other follower sluts. I'm sure there's tons of them."

His words hurt more than I thought they would. I braced myself against the lockers, waiting for Will to finally snap. However, it wasn't Will who'd finally had enough.

Austin seemed to leap forward. He grabbed a fistful of Griffin's shirt and shoved him up against the lockers next to me. I flinched and stumbled away, conveniently falling into Will's broad side. He wrapped a strong arm around me, pulling me from harm's way.

"Listen here, _prick_ ," Austin seethed. "You're going to turn around and walk away with your stupid friends when I let you go. And, if you ever so much as _breathe_ in Lilly's direction ever again, I'm going to kick your ass to Canada. Do you understand?"

It was the first time I'd ever seen Griffin fazed. He didn't look near as terrified as I'm sure I'd appeared, but he was definitely feeling the heat—literally—coming from Austin.

Sure enough, the moment he was free, Griffin hurried out of reach. He snagged up his backpack and swung it over his shoulder, before he inclined his head. His two friends followed after him.

I let a deep breath out through my nose once they were out of sight. I pulled out of Will's grasp and began to quickly gather my strewn papers that were still all over the floor. I refused to meet either boy's gaze, knowing I couldn't very well hide Griffin's tormenting antics any longer.

Once my mess was cleared up, I reached for my backpack but Austin pulled it from my reach. As I straightened up, I had no choice but to meet their eyes. They both exuded the same concerned and confused expressions. I owed them an explanation.

But, first, I was going to try and buy myself some time. "Thanks for that, but I'm late meeting Claire so if I can just have my bag—"

Will's composure broke quickly. "Oh, no," he exclaimed. "What the hell was that, Lilly? Why the hell was that fucking senior all up in your face, threatening your fucking family?"

I shrugged a shoulder. "Guess he had a bad day."

Austin shook his head. "I don't think so. That wasn't a first occurrence kind of atmosphere, Lills. Try again."

I bit my lip. "Can't you guys just pretend you didn't see anything? I don't have time to explain it. Quil's picking Claire and I up today and if I'm not in his truck in the next two minutes, he _will_ leave without me."

And Quil definitely would. He'd done so before. I wasn't up for walking home in the rain.

"Quil can wait," Austin informed me, crossing his arms over his chest.

Will wasn't as patient. In fact, he was pissed. "You want me to _pretend_ that I didn't see some guy breathing down your neck?"

Essentially. "Yes," I whispered.

His hand found my chin and while he was mad to all hell, his grip was soft. I was forced to meet his gaze and his eyes were stormier than ever, fire blazing within them.

"I am not going to sit back and let this go on any longer, whatever the hell it is," he told me. "I don't tell you this a lot, but you're like my little sister, Lilly, and I'm not going to just sit back and let some asshole scare the shit out of you like that. Not to mention, if I did and something happened, your dad and Brady would skin me alive."

I narrowed my eyes. "What does Brady have to do with all of this?"

Will opened his mouth to retort and Austin slapped his chest, sending him a warning glance. The exchange was not as subtle as I knew they'd tried to make it.

I crossed my arms. "Well?"

Austin swung my bag over his shoulder. "C'mon, let's go meet Quil."

By the time we got to the parking lot, which was on the other end of the school, Quil's beat-up pick up was the last vehicle in sight. He was standing outside, leaning against the tailgate with his cell phone in his hand. I could see the outline of my cousin in the passenger seat. Quil looked up as we approached, eyebrows raised and all joking, irritating mannerisms were wiped from his face. I'd never seen him look so serious.

"Something happened?"

"No," I chirped.

I vaguely wondered how I looked. I'm sure I was white as a sheet, walking out here on legs that were like spaghetti noodles like some drunken idiot, accompanied by two giants that I was not known for spending a lot of time with.

 _Sure, Lilly, nothing happened,_ I thought angrily. _Not even Quil is stupid enough to believe that_.

Quil and I might not have gotten along, but I knew he still felt partially responsible for my safety, since I was his friend's daughter and his girlfriend's cousin. And at this moment, I could feel his eyes raking over every inch of me, looking for injury. He was silent, scarily silent. I could slowly feel my composure breaking.

"There was," Austin said, ignoring my look of protest. "An _incident_."

Quil sighed. "There always is," he grumbled. "For goodness sake, Lilly, can't you just stay out of trouble for once in your damn life?"

I flinched at his words and Will's hand found my shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. "It wasn't her fault," he defended me. "And that is definitely not going to help."

By now, they'd all noticed how badly I was trembling. I was honestly surprised I was still standing. I supposed I'd been running on adrenaline when I'd been facing off against Griffin and now that he was gone and I was surrounded by people I knew would keep me safe, my resilience was quickly fading. I didn't have enough energy to remain brave. I needed a moment to be vulnerable.

I needed Brady.

Quil looked me over once more. "Okay," he agreed easily. "Does anyone need medical attention?"

I heard the passenger door squeak as Claire poked her head out. "Quil?" she asked cautiously. Obviously, her nosiness had gotten the better of her. Quil shook his head in her direction.

Will shook his head, answering Quil's question.

"Good," Quil said. "Lilly, get in the truck. And I guess you two better get in, too. You're late for patrol."

The ride home was supremely uncomfortable. Quil was furiously silent and sped down the quiet roads of La Push without so much as a glance and anyone's direction. Claire, knowing better than to poke her nose into whatever was going on, was desperate to know details anyway and kept trying to catch my eye, but I refused to look up. Will and Austin rode in the bed and I could hear the rumble of their voices through the thin window behind me, although I couldn't hear what they said.

Unfortunately, my house was not as empty as I had hoped it might be. Usually, on Wednesdays, my parents were out of town for the night to attend some sort of tribe meeting. Quil would pick us up from school, we'd order crappy pizza, and pack members would come and go all night long. Most of the time, Brady would join us as well. But today, it looked like my parents were home and most of the pack was already here.

I slid of out Quil's truck cautiously.

"Why are Aunt Emily and Uncle Sam here?" Claire asked.

Quil threw his car keys up in the air and then caught them. "Because when things don't go according to plan, people worry. And, when their daughter is a half hour late meeting us and two pack members are a half hour late from patrol, they worry a lot."

I bit my lip, looking away from everyone. My composure was hanging on by a thread at this point.

"Lay off, Quil."

Collin stood on the porch, glaring at his pack mate and as we approached, he jumped down the steps, coming to a stop in front of me. He wrapped an arm around me, pulling me tight to his side. "You okay, kiddo?"

We'd since gotten over our little spat the other day and considering things were about as normal as they got between the two of us, I was more than alright with letting Collin hold up all of my body weight while I sank into his comfort. I was so completely done with all of this drama, all of which wasn't even my fault to begin with.

"I'm fine," I told him, though my shaking voice said differently.

But, like a good friend, he nodded, appeasing the lie. "Okay," he murmured softly. "Well, how about we come on inside and you can tell me all about your exciting day at La Push High, huh?"

The others stayed outside, where I was sure Will and Austin were foiling my plans to keep everything quiet and on the down low. Now that my parents had put off their evening plans and everything was all messed up, I would have no choice but to tell everyone what was going on.

It wasn't as if I enjoyed lying to everyone. I knew I should have told someone about Griffin. But, surely, didn't we have enough going on around here? The pack still hadn't figured out what had been in the woods at the beach that day, though they were no longer convinced that I was losing my mind. That was much more important than some stupid, high school bully.

I should have handled it better. This was just one big mess now.

Collin pulled me to the kitchen, where my parents and Kim and Jared sat at the table. They all looked up as we approached. Their blatant attention made me uncomfortable, but Collin refused to let me wiggle out of his grip. I was stuck. Literally.

He gave me a nudge and after a moment, I sighed, before I gave a short nod. "Uh, Mom, Dad," I whispered quietly. "There's something I need to tell you.

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 **Anna the drama continues.**

 **Please review.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey everyone, hope you're all still with me.**

 **I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while. Life has been throwing a lot of curveballs in my direction lately.**

 **But, I have some more free time in my schedule as of late and am hoping to try and update more frequently. Hopefully you are all still interested in this story...**

 **I wrote this chapter a few weeks ago but am forever having issues with the doc manager. I downloaded google chrome and used it instead of safari and so far, fanfic is working much better. So, fingers crossed.**

 **Anyways, enjoy!**

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When I'd finally been able to escape my family later that evening, I found myself perched on one of the branches of the biggest tree in our backyard. I tried to pretend that my parents weren't watching my every move through the kitchen window, even though I could feel their eyes on me. I turned my back, leaning hard against the tree, trying to forget my house was even there.

I stared off into the forest, trying to lose myself in the smell of the pine trees and the flimsy shadows caused by the large leaves surrounding me. I wasn't doing a very good job, however, because all at once I was bombarded with everything going on in my life—school, Brady, Griffin. My head felt like it was going to explode.

As soon as Collin had convinced me to tell my parents what was going on, I'd been forced into telling them everything. Before I knew it, I had practically spilled my guts to them, leaving nothing out apart from my Brady issues. Once I'd gotten through explaining everything, I had dashed from the kitchen as quickly as I could, unable to stand being inside any longer. Unfortunately, the claustrophobic feeling hadn't dissipated once I was out in the fresh air like I'd thought it might.

I hadn't seen my father that angry in a long time. Mom always told me that he was the best at holding his temper, even when he'd been actively phasing. Uncle Paul said Dad had his own weaknesses just like everyone else. Dad had stopped phasing right before I was born, so I had never witnessed his wolf temper first hand. For the most part, from what I had seen, he was level headed, calm. He'd been the opposite of that just now. Before I had even finished my story, he was on the phone with the school principal and a bunch of other tribe council members demanding answers.

Mom's reaction might have been worse, though. First she cried, wondering aloud why I hadn't gone to anyone for help. Then, without letting me answer her question, she had smothered me with hugs until someone forced her to let me breathe.

That was the moment I'd escaped outside.

I absolutely hated being the center of attention. Ever since I'd almost drowned at Second Beach when I'd been five-years-old—Collin had saved me and every so often when I'm angry with him, he reminds me of this—I couldn't stand having any sort of heavy attention on myself. My skin would tingle, like a million tiny bugs were crawling all over me, and I would have to fight the urge to throw up.

I did whatever I could to make sure I was in these kinds of situations as little as possible.

This was the reason I tried to hide my encounters with Griffin. Not because I was an attention seeker, but rather because I didn't want to cause any more turmoil to my family than necessary. My family had a lot more pressure than others; they literally _protected_ the entire tribe every single day. Why would I want to give them more things to worry about?

I'd been doing so well, too! Griffin had started his torture long before today. I'd hidden his ridiculous antics for years now. It was just like Will and Austin to ruin all my hard work.

My fingers scrubbed my forehead, knowing that wasn't exactly true. It had been my own fault that I'd gotten caught today. If I hadn't been so focused on thinking about Brady, I might have noticed Griffin's arrival sooner. I had learned long ago that if I just took the abuse, rather than sassing back, Griffin would get bored quickly. I'd been much too distracted today to follow my regular traits.

It was times like this that I wished I had phased into the pack. Maybe if I was stronger and bigger, I could handle myself better. The way I was now, small and slightly frail-like by nature, I could hardly expect myself to stand up to someone like Griffin. Not only was I completely unconfident in my abilities, he was _huge_. Not pack huge, but _huge_ nonetheless.

I wasn't sure how long I had sat in the tree, moping, when I felt the trunk rattle. Eyes widening at the sudden movement, I grabbed at the branch beneath me, feeling unstable. If I fell out of this tree and injured myself, my parents would literally kill me.

A soft chuckle rose from the direction of the ground and I squinted, peering down at the tall figure at the base of the tree. Brown, swirly eyes stared up at me and although it was starting to get darker with the setting sun, I could still make out the blatant concern building up in his gaze.

I sighed, the sound deep and shaky.

"Come down here."

I leaned my head back against the branch above me, closing my eyes tightly. "No, thank you."

He leaned his back against the trunk of the tree, bare and muscular despite the cooling temperatures. The boys of the pack were never cold.

"Lilly."

He'd always told me that I was stubborn and while I may have been acting out a little, I was more embarrassed than anything else. If I stayed in the tree, where there was distinct space between the two of us, I could guarantee holding myself together. But, if I climbed down to his level, like he wanted, I'd fall apart in an instant. I was sure I had cried enough on him to last us a lifetime—I refused to do it again.

"I'll just pull you down," he said knowingly, a growing smirk on his handsome face.

I couldn't help but roll my eyes at him, despite how uncomfortable I was feeling. "Even you aren't that tall."

I was still on the lower half of the tree, but high enough up that it was still a stretch for anyone to reach me. Brady and the other pack members were ridiculously tall, but they weren't real giants. If he wanted me to come down, he was going to have to come get me himself.

The two of us were silent for a long moment and I could see the wheels in Brady's head slowly turning. Before I could open my mouth to warn him from doing anything stupid, he leapt his long, taut body gracefully up the lower limbs of the tree. I watched, slightly mesmerized by his body's motions, as he climbed his way through the branches until he was sitting directly next to me.

My fingers clenched around the branch beneath me, feeling the vibrations through the tree because of Brady's sudden movements. I felt extremely unstable in my once steady spot and I wondered if maybe going onto the ground would have been a better idea after all.

It took me a moment to work up the courage to meet his eyes once more and when I did, I had to fight every fiber of my being not to allow my emotions to take over my actions. Seeing Brady, his giant frame tucked into the leaves surrounding us, gave me a large sense of déja vu. Any time I'd ever been upset as a kid, I had climbed this tree to get away from everything.

Brady had always known where I was. It had become "our thing" to sit in this tree together.

But, I had been a _lot_ smaller back than. I worried our weight wouldn't be held up by this branch forever. My fingers refused to let go, as if I could single handedly keep the branch's solidarity in tact.

When I focused back on Brady's face, he was smiling softly, as if he could read where my thoughts had travelled.

"Fancy meeting you here," he teased gently.

I shrugged a shoulder. "It was the only quiet place I could go."

He leaned back, casually folding his hands behind his head as he gazed at me. "And, why would you need somewhere quiet?" he asked innocently.

I rolled my eyes again. "Oh, c'mon," I muttered. "It's not like you didn't read Collin's thoughts on patrol."

His lips twisted into a tiny smirk, as if he was unable to help himself. "Maybe. But, I think you should humor me and tell me anyway."

I gritted my teeth, wondering if there was any way to downplay what had happened. Like a lot of the males in my family, Brady was very good at overreacting about silly things. I was hoping that maybe for once, he wouldn't take what had happened with Griffin so seriously.

I couldn't stand him being angry with me.

One of his warm hands found its way to my own. Carefully, he pried my fingers off the bark of the tree and wound them within his own. He gave them a gentle squeeze.

It was enough to pry the words from within me.

"Griffin Syers hates my guts," I announced carefully.

Brady's face was carefully emotionless, but there was a slight strain within his eyes that I could just make out. I pursed my lips together at his struggle, refusing to make him any angrier than he already seemed to be. I hated to upset any one, but I disliked upsetting Brady most of all.

"Why do you think that?" he prompted after a moment of silence.

I studied him. The strain was less prominent than before. Maybe I'd imagined it. Maybe he wasn't upset at all.

"Lilly."

I let my eyes fall as I spoke once more. "I _know_ he does. Ever since we were little kids, he's had it out for me."

"Why?" Brady asked again, sounding less patient than before.

I sighed. "Because of this." I gestured around us. "Because of who I am. Because of who we are."

I watched with confusion, as Brady's eyes widened for a spilt second, like my words meant something entirely different, before he carefully fixed his expression. He nodded a few times, like he was processing information. Maybe he just didn't know what to say.

"He doesn't like you because of the pack." It wasn't a question, but rather stated like one.

I nodded.

"Hmm," Brady murmured.

I started to move, getting ready to climb my way down the tree. What was I thinking? Why would Brady be interested in this silly high school drama I had found myself in? Obviously, I was just wasting his time. "You don't have to say anything," I whispered.

"Why do you say that?"

God, he was full of questions. "Because it doesn't have anything to do with you."

 _It's not your fight_ , I silently told him.

Suddenly, he sighed, and the sound was short and frustrated. "Lilly—"

"No," I said, shaking my head. "It's okay."

A hand appeared over my mouth, silencing anything else I might have said. My eyes widened and I froze completely. We were suddenly very close together.

"Will you let me talk for a second?" he asked softly.

Gulping back the heavy feelings I suddenly had, I forced myself to nod.

"If anyone ever threatens you," he said. "About anything, I want to know about it. Do you understand?"

I nodded quickly, taken back by the strength in his words.

"You don't have to fight everything by yourself, Lilly. I'm— _we_ are all here for you. Always."

I didn't get a chance to answer, because his hand was still over my mouth. I was a little surprised by how quickly he had reacted to what I said. I expected him to be upset about Griffin, but not this angry. I mean, he wasn't shaking yet, but I could see the telltale tremble beginning at his fingertips. Every so often, his fingers twitched on my face.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked out of nowhere.

He removed his hand from my mouth, but it still took me a moment to answer. "I didn't tell anyone."

"That's not what I asked you."

"I've spent the last three or four times I've actually seen you crying or screaming or doing something stupidly dramatic. Why would I willingly tell you about a dumb situation with an even dumber guy at school?"

Brady ran a hand through his already messy hair. It was getting long, longer than I'd seen it in a while. I secretly liked it. "Nothing you ever do is dumb, Lilly," he said. "But, all that being said, you said this moron has been bugging you for a long time. Why is this the first any of us are hearing about it?"

I couldn't do anything but tell him the truth at this point. "Bray. I thank whoever is listening above that I'm lucky enough to have you—and all the others—in my life. I'm not going to ruin that by being a stupid girl that everyone has to help and save all the time. You guys have better things to do than worry about me."

I had to physically stop myself from babbling further. If I had, I might have said something that would have opened up an entirely larger can of worms—one I could have never come back from.

What I'd said was completely true, though. I often felt inadequate, considering most of my friends and family morphed into giant, life saving, vampire killing dogs. What did I have to show for myself? Nothing in that kind of standard.

I refused to be known as the annoying girl that everyone always had to babysit. Yet, here we were, sitting in a tree—literally—discussing yet another stupid thing I'd gotten myself into.

Brady's face blocked my view from anything else around us, and all of a sudden I couldn't think about anything else. My thoughts vanished, worries silenced, and I was staring dumbfounded into those brown eyes of his that I loved so much.

"You listen to me, Lillian Samantha," Brady murmured. "Do you remember that promise you made me when you were twelve?"

I knew instantly what he was talking about. I thought back to my twelfth birthday, when Brady had found me crying behind the house with a set of bruised knuckles during my backyard birthday party. I'd been forced into an innocent game of "spin the bottle", when a boy in my class had been dared to kiss me. When he had, I'd punched him in the nose, and then had hidden away. Brady had found me not long after, where I'd been wallowing in my twelve-year-old self-pity and hormonal confusion.

"What was that promise?" he whispered gently.

I took a deep breath through my nose, feeling my resolve weaken a little. "I promised that I'd never hide anything from you, no matter how bad it was."

"Look at me," he pleaded, his breath soft on my face.

I did, tears welling softly behind my eyes. His face was blurry.

"You are my very best friend, Lilly," he said. "It hurts me when you're upset and I want to do whatever I can do to keep you from feeling that way. Whether it's a vampire, or a stupid asshole you go to school with, I will do _whatever_ I have to, in order to make sure you're safe."

"But—"

He shook his head, silencing me. "I can't keep you safe if you hide things from me. I don't care what it's about; I want to know every single thing about your days, Lills. I want to know what makes you happy and what makes you upset. I want to know that you're _okay_. So again, I'm going to ask you to promise me that you won't hide things, that you won't try to fight things on your own when you don't have to."

A single tear dripped down my cheek, falling onto my chin. Brady wiped it away with his thumb.

"Promise me, honey," he whispered.

I nodded, before I crumbled and leaned over to bury my face into his bare chest. There was no hesitation on his end and his strong arms came around me at once, holding me securely against him. I'd never felt safer.

"I love you," he murmured against my hairline.

This wasn't anything uncommon. From the time I'd learned to tell people I loved them, Brady was one of the first to hear it. And according to Collin, he had heard it _all the time_. As I'd gotten older, we said it less and less to each other. I was much too shy to ever say it to Brady after a long time of not saying it to one another. Brady never seemed to have a problem saying it. He always reminded me that I was loved every now and again.

For some reason, it always felt more special coming from him.

"Love you too," I mumbled against his chest.

He squeezed me a little tighter for a long moment, before his palms rubbed up and down my back a couple of times. Our hugged ended and I wiped my sleeve over my moist face.

"C'mon," Brady said, reaching a beckoning hand in my direction as he started to climb down the tree. "I smell your mom's meatloaf."

I chuckled, shaking my head at his antics. "When are you not hungry?"

"Shut up."

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 **Please review :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**Yay, I remembered to update in a timely fashion. You're welcome.**

 **Enjoy a little Lilly and Claire banter. Oh, and did someone say Mr. Jacob Black?**

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"Lilly!"

The loud, booming voice seemed to shake my brain inside my skull. I grumbled, burrowing deeper under my quilt and squeezed my eyelids together. There was absolutely no way it was morning already.

Someone thumped their hand against the wall by the staircase, which was directly under my room.

I pulled my pillow out from beneath my head and used it to cover my face.

"Lillian Samantha," Dad shouted again. "If you don't get up now, you're going to be late for school."

 _Good_ , I thought sleepily.

After the week I'd had, school wasn't exactly something high on my priority list. Between the heavy loads of homework my teachers were cramming in before spring break, my family acting like babysitters on steroids, and the whole falling-in-love-with-Brady thing, I was spent. There was nothing I wanted to do more than spend my entire day dozing in my bedroom.

My eyes flashed open at my silent admission to myself. Had I really just admitted that I was in love with Brady? When had I decided that? And, more importantly, was that an even ethical thing to think?

 _Yes,_ my brain teased.

Before I could dwell on my internal argument any longer, my bedroom door flung open. I tensed beneath my blankets, feigning slumber. The pillow disappeared off my face and landed somewhere across my bedroom. It took everything in my willpower to keep as completely still as possible.

"Nice try," a deep voice murmured. "I've been around long enough to know what you look like when you're sleeping."

I smirked, keeping my eyes closed. "Well, that's kind of creepy, don't you think?"

In one swift movement, my blankets disappeared onto the floor as well. Two warm hands found my sides, digging into my ribs mercilessly. I squirmed, unable to keep still any longer. I was ridiculously ticklish.

"Okay," I cried, gasping in a bunch of needed oxygen. "Okay, you win."

Once I caught my breath, I rolled my eyes up to look at the large figure standing above me. I studied his face—his prominent cheekbones, his wispy black hair that was much shorter than I remembered, and of course, the hundred-watt smile that he was known for.

It was a face I missed more than I cared to admit.

"Hey, Uncle Jake."

He smiled, his expression light and soft. He pushed my legs over and sat down on the side of my bed. The mattress squeaked a little in protest.

As much as I had woken up in a cranky mood, seeing my favourite uncle and God father sitting in my bedroom made up for not getting to sleep all day. Jacob Black was my father's best ally and closest friend and I had grown up with him being a constant figure in my every day life. He was practically like my second father and often a lot more terrifying and strict than the original.

He had imprinted a few years after I'd been born. If anyone had the most unique imprinting story, it was definitely his. Imprinting on the half-human, half-vampire daughter of the human-turned-vampire he used to be in love with? No one but Uncle Jake could pull something off like that.

In the early stages of his imprint, his imprint's family, the Cullens, had resided in a large residence tucked away in Forks. It made it easy for Jake to not only be a large part of his imprint's life, but also tend to his Alpha duties here in La Push. This meant I saw him all the time.

But, as his imprint aged and her family moved to their next residence in some exotic place in the world, Uncle Jake wasn't as present all the time. He traveled along with his new family and only returned every so often to check in.

I loved that my uncle was happy, but I had missed him terribly. Now that he and his imprint, Renesmee—who everyone called Nessie—had found a closer spot to the reservation to live, I got to see him a lot more often. But, he also had a family of his own and a three-year-old son that deserved his attention more than I did.

Most recently, Uncle Jake and Aunt Nessie had been up to Alaska to visit with her family. And, while I was more than pleased to see him, I couldn't help but feel quite concerned that he was back so soon.

"Hey," he murmured. "Where'd my favourite smile go?"

I forced myself not to dwell. I sat up quickly and threw my arms around my uncle, closing my eyes against his broad shoulder. It didn't take long for his arms to fold around me and he gave me a gentle squeeze. I felt his lips in my hair.

"Missed you, kiddo," he said softly.

I leaned back so I was sitting next to him. "Missed you too."

We were silent for a long moment, before I felt his calloused hand smooth across my forehead. The contact brought my attention forth once more and I looked up at him curiously.

"How's it going, kid?"

I shrugged one shoulder carefully. "It's going."

He raised a thick eyebrow. "So I've heard."

"Then why'd you ask?" I retorted, feeling myself fall into familiar banter.

Uncle Jake chuckled, shaking his head at me. Then, without another word or any more interrogation, he stood up and walked back towards my open bedroom door. He stopped in the doorway, turning to face me once more.

"If you weren't going to be late, there's no way I'd let that crap slide," he said. "But, you have exactly fifteen minutes to get ready."

I raised an eyebrow back at him. "What if I don't want to go to school today?"

He gave an innocent shrug. "What _if_ you don't have a say in the matter?"

I sighed.

He tapped his fist on the doorframe. "Get to it then. You have five minutes before I send Collin up," he warned.

I groaned, flopping back on the mattress.

By the time Quil's truck pulled into the parking lot, there were hardly any spots left. He circled the lot for a moment, before finding a spot reasonably close to the front door. The schoolyard was busy, as the first bell had yet to ring. I swung open my door, pulling the hood of my raincoat over my head as I hopped down onto the pavement. It wasn't raining yet, but the sky held promise of a downpour that I suspected would start any moment.

I leaned back against the truck bed as I waited for my cousin to say goodbye to Quil. It was hard not to roll my eyes at their lovesick behaviour. They were hardly ever apart, except when Claire and I had school. I didn't understand how someone would _willingly_ spend that much time with Quil.

I gave them exactly thirty seconds longer before I knocked on the closed passenger window. "C'mon Claire, we're gonna be late."

There was a loud sigh and a muffled curse before Claire's door swung open.

"And whose fault is that?"

This time I did roll my eyes. I shrugged my backpack higher onto my shoulder and started towards the looming building before us.

Quil shouted my name before I got too far.

"What?" I snapped.

He rolled down his own window, as it was closer to me now. His gaze was serious as he looked at me. "I said: you let us know if you have any more problems."

I had to clench my teeth to keep from saying anything I might regret. Giving him a careful nod, I started towards the building once more, unable to worry about waiting for Claire any longer.

I heard her chirp one more goodbye in Quil's direction. Then, her ballet flats clacking against the pavement as she hurried to catch up to me. Once she was at my shoulder, the truck engine started up loudly behind us.

I studied my cousin out of the corner of my eye as we walked up the front steps of the school. Despite the fact that Claire and I were practically sisters, we couldn't have been more polar opposite to one another. Claire was beautiful, with light russet skin and long hair that she styled into curls. They bounced as she walked, hung carefully to the middle of her back. She wore a fair bit of makeup—and she would have worn even more had my father not argued with her about it—and dressed much more stylish than I would even consider in this awfully dreary weather.

Essentially, my cousin was everything I was not. While Claire was shorter than I and suited her small, curvy frame, I was taller than most girls on the Res and resembled a beanpole. I had no curves, practically no breasts, and despite how much my mother shoved food in my direction, was probably a little underweight. God knew with cooking like Mom's that I ate enough, but as you might of guessed, strong metabolisms ran in my family.

Claire always went out of her way to make sure she looked wonderful, whereas I didn't care too much about my appearance. I never wanted to look like a slob or anything, but I didn't go shopping for skirts and shoes like my cousin did. I was happy with my jeans and cardigan—anything to keep me warm in this wet weather.

"I wish the two of you would get along," Claire said, distracting me from my mental comparison.

I held the door open for her, allowing her to sneak through into the building before me. When I didn't answer right away, she turned to look at me. I sighed in frustration. "I don't know what to tell you, Claire."

"Do you know how much it sucks to have your best friend and your boyfriend hate each other?"

I frowned at her. "I don't hate Quil."

"But, you don't like him either."

I didn't say anything to contradict her. We'd had this conversation plenty of times.

We stopped at my locker first. Claire was a senior, so we didn't have any classes together, but our first classes were close to one another, so we always walked there together. I enjoyed having someone like Claire around, because I wasn't sure who I would spend time with here if I didn't have her. I was sure I would be quite lonely.

I fiddled with my textbooks, as Claire jabbered away about some nonsense, leaning on the locker next to mine. Pretending to listen, I let my mind wander to the one constant thing that seemed to consume me lately.

 _Brady_.

My heart lurched a little, just thinking about him. I couldn't begin to describe how much I missed him and it was almost a little ridiculous how much it was affecting me. I knew it had been less than twenty-four hours since I'd last seen him. Surely, I could go this long without pining for his company. I knew there was absolutely no way he was feeling this way without me.

"Lilly," Claire shrieked, stabbing her nail into my forearm to collect my attention. "Didn't you hear what I said?"

I gave my head a slight shake, as if it would take the jumbled thoughts out of my mind. "Sorry," I said. "What were you saying?"

Claire frowned. Her eyes ran over my face, trying to read my expression. "What's with you lately?"

I bit my lip, hesitating. I supposed if I was going to tell anyone, I could tell Claire. I had considered talking to her about my sudden feelings several times now. Claire wasn't a very sensitive person when it came to other people's problems, but she had proved more than enough times that she was always ready to listen when I had a problem. With so many boys around all the time, it was nice to have someone like her to talk to about things like this.

The problem was, this wasn't a stupid crush like I was eight-years-old. This was _Brady_. Even if I didn't use his name, I knew in an instant she'd know whom I was speaking about. With how close she was with Quil and how close all the pack members were, I couldn't trust her to keep this from him. One spill of anything and Quil would spread gossip like wild fire.

It wasn't something I was willing to risk.

I slammed my locker shut, turning to face her. "I've just got a lot on my plate."

She raised any eyebrow. "Well, lighten up," she said. "Spring break is soon and I will not have you ruining the mood."

I gritted my teeth a little. There was the Claire we all knew and loved.

"Yeah," I muttered. "Thanks."

She grabbed my wrist and started pulling me down the hall. "Come on, let's go."

As we headed to our homerooms, I changed my mind.

Talking with Claire was surely not going to solve my problems with Brady. If that's what it even was.

I was on my own.

* * *

 **Thanks guys, hope you liked! Please review.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey, guys! New update, yay!**

 **I'm super proud of this chapter. I've finally gotten my groove back with this story (I hope).**

 **Finally, some more Brady and Lilly fluff. Plus, some real action - vampire action, that is.**

* * *

It was quiet as I stomped up the steps of our freshly painted front porch. The air was heavy around me, like there was a storm coming this way. My hair hung around my warm cheeks in a suffocating way and my t-shirt was stuck to my shoulders, making me feel clammy in the abnormally warm afternoon temperature. Still, I burst through the front door with a purpose.

" _Where's_ Quil?" I growled as I kicked off my muddy shoes at the door.

There was no answering response to be heard. Confused, I continued to move through the eerily silent house, passing the empty living room to move onto the kitchen. Never in my sixteen years had I ever seen our house this vacant—heard it be _this_ quiet. I didn't understand what was going on.

My mother had taken Claire to an appointment in Seattle today and although I hadn't had my cousin's company for school, I'd been informed that it was still Quil's responsibility to pick me up at the end of the day, much to his extreme delight. Friday's were always Quil's day to drive.

And it was such a _Quil_ thing to do to leave me behind at school. Had Claire been the only one at school today, he would have been an hour early, would have gotten the closest parking spot to the door, and would have placed rose petals all over as a path to his beat up truck. Okay, so that was probably an over exaggeration, but my point was, he wouldn't have forgotten to pick her up.

I wasn't so useless to think I couldn't survive a twenty-five minute walk from school, but my parents preferred us to have a reliable ride to and from school to ensure our safety. Quil had practically begged my parents to let him drive us there, you know, so he could make out with my cousin without my father breathing down his throat. I'd only agreed as long as Brady could drive us some days, too.

So, when I'd given up waiting after a half hour, I'd stormed home with the intent to give Quil a piece of my mind. I was so sure he'd just decided not to pick me up because he'd been moping around without Claire all day.

But, that wasn't turning out to be the case.

The kitchen was also empty, adding fuel to my confusion. I couldn't remember the last time I had ever been home alone, not with the crazily overprotective parents I had. Someone was always here and although I'd been left behind at school, I hadn't expected to have no one at home, as well.

For any normal teenager, being surprised by an empty house probably wouldn't be any sort of a big deal. Maybe it would even be a blessing in disguise. But, to me, a girl with a family full of boys who turn into werewolves and fight vampires for a living, an empty house was a very, very scary thing to come home to.

I sat down on the edge of one of the kitchen chairs, trying to count my breaths. I was on the verge of panicking and I knew it wasn't going to help me any. Running my fingers through my messy hair, I tried to wrack my brain for any sort of intelligent solution to my current problem.

Eyeing the phone across the room, I jumped up and skidded across the hardwood floor until I reached the counter. Squeezing the phone between my hands, as if it might give me the answers I needed, I immediately started dialling the first number that came to mind. I was going to call the one person I knew I could count on no matter what.

The longer the ringer went, the more I held my breath. I was begging, _pleading_ for someone to pick up on the other end. I would take _any_ familiar voice at this point.

" _Hey_ —"

I let out a giant sigh. "Oh, Bray—thank _God_ —where is every—"

" _—_ _You've reached Brady. Leave a message and I'll get back to you as soon as I can."_

I slammed the phone down on the counter in frustration. Unable to hold myself up any longer, I slid down the edge of the cupboards until I was sitting on the floor. I wiped angrily at the newly formed moisture in my eyes, feeling completely ridiculous.

I wasn't necessarily scared of being _alone_ , I was more scared of what being alone meant. Considering the empty house around me, I imagined that my family was out risking their lives for the rest of the tribe right about now. There must have been some sort of major incident and whether it was a vampire breach, I wasn't sure.

It wasn't like my parents not to let me know, though. Ever since I'd learned about werewolves and vampires, I was treated like someone that _needed_ to know what was going on. Sure, there were some "need to know" things that I probably wasn't informed about, but for the most part, I knew what was happening around here. And, while it never used to be very common, a vampire sighting was definitely something I would have been told about.

I think that was why I was so worried. Not only worried about the pack, but about the rest of my family, too. Were they hurt? Had someone taken them? Where were they?

The questions rolling around in my mind were endless. I felt utterly light-headed.

A shrilling howl went up in the air, echoing through the entire house. I could feel the vibrations through the floor and like I'd been electrocuted, I shot up and moved towards the back door. The sound was familiar to me and comforting and for a slight second, I thought that it would mean my confusion would soon be over. I half expected them to burst through the trees at the end of the yard, goofing around like usual.

That wasn't what happened. Not even close.

The figure that came through the trees was neither familiar nor Quileute.

He was terrifying.

His skin was like porcelain and the moment the sun touched him, he was almost so see-through that it was blinding. His body moved like nothing I'd ever seen before, creating blurs across the lawn as he ran. His fire red hair matched his stark red eyes and while I was absolutely scared out of my mind, I was also mesmerized.

I knew something was very wrong as I unlocked the back door and moved onto the deck. I could feel my body moving without my brain's permission and my fingers gripped at the edge of the doorframe, trying to stop my feet. Everything in my mind was telling me that this was wrong, that I needed to stay in the house and wait for Brady to show up.

My body didn't agree.

My feet stopped at the edge of the deck, several yards away from him. I could feel the damp wood beneath my socks and I tried to focus on that, instead of the abomination standing a few feet away. I could hear my breath rasping in my lungs and my heartbeat was in my throat.

Still, I couldn't move.

He had this grin on his marble face that made my legs tremble in the worst way possible. I felt utterly numb and I couldn't move as he slowly made his way up the stairs towards me. I couldn't tell if I was crying—I didn't even know how to describe what I was feeling.

"Ah-ha," he chuckled. "I knew we would meet again."

I was full blown shaking at this point. Every instinct in my mind was telling me to run, to scream, to do _something_ besides standing there like a freaking offering in his direction, but it didn't seem to make a difference. I had no control over my body.

So, I stood there—a trembling, blubbering mess as he made his way over to me.

I'd been lucky. Ever since the Black-Cullen alliance, the area of La Push had been stripped of any abnormal vampire activity. From what had been explained to me, once the Cullens had stood up to the vampire royalty known as the Volturi, no nomad vampires wanted to set foot in the area claimed by the alliance. No smart ones, anyways.

Even with such little activity, the pack was always careful. They did regular patrols of the reservation and most of Forks to make sure no vampires went unnoticed. Sure, the odd sighting still occurred, but the pack was good—too good. They knew what they were doing.

This was why this vampire standing on the deck in my father's backyard was so, so frightening to me. Where was the pack and how had he gotten through them?

Apart from the Cullens, I'd never truly been in the presence of a vampire before. There had surely never been one this close to my home before and without my family around to protect me, I was hopeless. I didn't phase and I was sure none of the self-defence tactics I'd been taught would help me against this indestructible creature.

How was I going to survive this?

The vampire cocked his head to one side curiously. "Such a strange thing you are."

My eyes seemed to be the only thing I had control over and they snapped up to meet his strange red ones. I wished I could say something to him—anything at all. But, I couldn't even get my mouth to unclench.

He chuckled, the sound light and airy. "Oh, my mistake."

There was a slight _whoosh_ of air around me and then I was able to feel every single part of my body again. And, the first thing I felt was the fact that my body was too heavy for my trembling legs. I hit the deck hard, the back of my head bouncing against the wood underneath me. My teeth clacked together and stars formed in front of my vision. I could taste the metallically, bitter taste of my blood in my mouth.

"You were saying?" the vampire asked. He was slowly getting closer to me and for someone so unbreakable, he was awfully graceful on his feet.

Once I had about fifty-percent of my vision back, I looked again to the trees at the end of the yard. Could I make it to those trees before he could? Was he really that fast?

I didn't get the chance to try. The vampire was in my face, then, his breath icy on my face, his eyes bright with anger. I scooted backwards, trying to create some space between us despite the fact that I could feel the skin of my palms ripping on the wood beneath me.

"Try me, _little girl_ ," the vampire snarled. "It'll only make me more angry."

I spat out blood in his direction, feeling my own anger begin to bubble. Much to my disgust, my action distracted him enough for a moment and I did the only thing I felt like I could do at this point.

I screamed—with every single fiber of my being. It felt like my throat was bleeding and collapsing at the same time but I didn't care. They had to hear me— _someone_ had to know I was here.

The vampire's eyes flashed. " _You_ —"

A low growl sounded from the trees, interrupting whatever threat he was about to give me. The vampire spun away from me in a blur of motion and all of his attention was on the furry figure skulking out of the woods. Had he been a cat, all of his hackles would have been raised. This may have been my first time seeing a vampire, but I knew what a pissed off person looked like when I saw one.

In fact, angry people were sort of my expertise.

I took his new distraction to my advantage and scuttled back a few more feet from him. I could see several wolves making their way out of the cover of the trees and towards the vampire, who was now stationed in the middle of the yard. I could see they were trying to circle around him, to block him from escaping through any direction.

Apparently, he could see it, too. In one second, he was standing in my backyard and the next; he was slipping past snapping jaws towards the trees. At the last second, he turned and winked in my direction, a promising smile on his pale face. My stomach rolled and I clenched my teeth, trying not to be sick.

He disappeared in the shadows of the trees with three wolves on his tail.

The moment I was alone, I fell apart. I collapsed in on myself, tears and blood mixed together. My brain was still trying to process everything that was happening and my legs and arms felt like a pile of mush. My breath was coming out in tight, uncomfortable bursts.

I clenched my eyes together, begging this to be a dream.

"Lilly!"

I vaguely recognized several figures breaking through the trees. This time they were human and that was enough for me to realize I wouldn't have to defend myself to my death any longer. If they were human, then the vampire was dead.

Right?

Through my muddled mind, I noted that someone's warm arms were trying to pry my fingers out of my hair. There was someone talking to me, but surely they couldn't have been speaking English, because I didn't understand a word they were saying. I shook my head frantically, squeezing my eyes shut once more.

"Lilly," someone was saying to me. "Lilly, honey, you've gotta let go okay. Let go."

I heaved a sobbing breath and someone patted my shoulder blades gently.

"You're safe now," the person murmured. "There you go, just relax. Let go, Lills."

Somehow, the person kneeling beside me had managed to remove my fingers from my now unruly hair, which I hadn't even realized I was holding onto. The same person was then examining the back of my head, moving my hair every which way, surely making it even messier than it already was.

There was a set of fingers gripping my chin and while it steadied my shaking mind, it took me several long moments to get my eyes to focus on their face.

Collin.

It wasn't the brown eyes I'd been hoping to see, but I would take them nonetheless. I met his strong, careful gaze and tried to steady myself to match him. But, it didn't seem to be working.

"Look at me," Collin was murmuring. His fingers brushed my cheek and forehead carefully.

"I—" I couldn't finish, my voice was rough and it burned my throat to speak. Tears pricked the back of my eyes.

"Jesus," someone muttered under their breath to the right of me.

The person next to me snapped at them to be quiet.

Collin squeezed my hand, trying to get me to focus on him once more. The pressure of his fingers on mine caused a stinging sensation on my palm that momentarily grounded me. I was no longer as numb to my body as I'd been several moments before, despite the constant buzzing in my head, and now that my feeling was returning, I was starting to realize how much some things hurt.

"Does your head hurt?" Collin asked me; looking the most serious I'd ever seen him. "And you better damn well be honest with me right about now."

He was looking serious and stern, but his voice wavered, betraying him. It was scary to me, to see someone like Collin so unsure and hesitant. My brain couldn't seem to comprehend _why_ he was feeling this way, despite the fact that I was sitting here bleeding all over the place.

I heaved an unsteady breath that sounded more like a hiccup than anything else.

"That's not helpful, Collin," a different voice snapped. A hand appeared on the top of my head, warmth radiating from the person's fingertips. "Lilly, we're going to take you to get some help, okay?"

I wiped the back of my hand across my mouth and it came back sticky with blood. My vision, as distant as it was, stayed focused on that red colour that my mind now connected to something entirely new. A sob slipped through my teeth.

"Where's Brady?"

"He's gonna meet us, kiddo."

I resisted against the set of arms that were trying to pick me up off the deck. "Why isn't he here?"

There was a quick hesitation on all their parts.

"He had to help chase that leech. He's gonna catch up with us, okay? Come on."

I shook my head and felt even dizzier than I'd already felt. "I need him."

Didn't they understand? It didn't matter how many times they reassured me that it was over, that everything was all hunky-dory and okay—it would never be any of those things without Brady close by. Was he hurt? Did he catch the vampire or had the vampire tried to hurt him? Why wasn't he here?

Why did my head hurt so much?

Will, whom I hadn't recognized until this moment, seemed to give up on the others' quiet and careful tactic and loaded me into his arms, struggling limbs and all. He ignored Collin's surprised protest and my quiet whimper from being jostled around and started walking towards the front of the house. He carried me like I weighed nothing at all. The warmth radiating from him thwarted my defense against my sleepy eyelids. They kept trying to close on their own accord, as if I was suddenly ridiculously exhausted.

He jostled me again and my eyes shot open at the quick sting of pain that vibrated through my body. I gritted my teeth.

"Stay awake, okay?" Will said quietly. "You have a concussion. You can't sleep until you see a doctor."

I knew he was speaking to me and I knew what the words he was saying meant, but I didn't really understand _how_ they applied to me. Why did Will Lahote suddenly think he could tell me what to do? Did he actually think he had that kind of authority just because he was part of the pack?

"I'll drive." A figure pushed past us carefully, making his way over to my father's truck—which I hadn't noticed until now. Uncle Seth clambered into the driver's seat, keying the engine.

Collin was waiting for us at the truck. _How slow had Will been walking?_ He opened the door to the back seat and scooted in to the far side, leaving room for Will to lift me into the seat closest to the door. Once I was buckled in, like I was four-years-old again or something, the door closed firmly behind me. The sound rattled my brain inside my head.

I felt like I was experiencing some sort of out of body experience. I could see everything happening around me and I could hear the voices of the three males with me, but that didn't mean I necessarily could put two and two together. Not only did I not know where they were taking me, but also I didn't know _why_ we were going there.

Collin was sitting next to me as Uncle Seth maneuvered through the streets of La Push and I could feel his gaze burning into me. He didn't have his seatbelt on and his entire frame was turned so that he was looking in my direction. His warm hand was resting on my neck almost as if he was holding up my head for me.

"Where's my mom?" I asked. My voice was raspy, like I hadn't spoken for months.

Collin's undivided attention was on me. "She's with your dad and Claire. With Kim and Jared."

I shook my head, wincing at the movement. " _Where_?"

"She's at Jake's, honey," Uncle Seth said, looking at me through the rearview mirror. "That's where we're going. You'll see her soon."

Uncle Jacob? We were going to his house in Forks?

"We can't—"

Collin squeezed my neck gently. "It's okay. The others are tracking the vampire in a totally different direction. You'll be safe at Jake's."

I closed my eyes. "Brady?" I asked again, quieter. The numbness was fading slowly to embarrassment. I couldn't remember what happened two minutes ago, but I could only imagine how humiliating it was.

"He'll be there, too," Collin assured me. "I promise."

I didn't question why they seemed so at ease with my need for Brady's presence. None of them seemed offended that I found no comfort in their company and they didn't seem surprised by my wish to have him close by. It was almost as if they expected it.

I was far too concussed to connect anything together at this point.

Uncle Seth drove quickly through the reservation and within what seemed like no time at all, we were rounding the tree covered bend that blocked Uncle Jake's secluded ranch house from view. To anyone that didn't know this house existed, they'd never be able to find it. The driveway hardly looked like a real driveway, but more like an off-roading path.

I'd only been here a few times. Never had I been here without my parents or Brady present. Never had I been here without a week's worth of planning beforehand. I wasn't allowed in Forks at the best of times and we definitely had never taken refuge in Forks before. But, I supposed the pack leader's house was one of the better places to hide out, killer vampire or not.

My door was ripped open before Uncle Seth had even put the truck into park. I jumped with surprise, crying out as my head and body strained uncomfortably.

It was those brown eyes that grounded me, that kept me from completely freaking out in that instance.

Brady untangled me from my restricting seatbelt and pulled me into his arms, holding me like I was made of glass. His nose was in my hair and my forehead was in his collarbone but I didn't care.

"It's okay, you're okay," Brady soothed as I became a blubbering mess all over his bare chest.

I wiped my nose with the back of my hand and tried to get a hold of myself. I had promised myself I wouldn't cry in front of Brady anymore. Yet, here I was, spreading snot and tears and blood all over him in the most unladylike fashion.

I was certainly a winner.

"Is she hurt?" Brady was asking frantically, his eyes searching my body for injury. "Are you hurt, sweetheart? Tell me what hurts."

I was pretty sure he was freaking out worse than I was.

The front door to Uncle Jake's house burst open and my mother ran down the steps, barefooted and hysterical. She paid no attention to my father or the other figures standing in the doorway behind her as she hurried over to where Brady and I were. Within seconds, my face was in her hands and she was crying harder than I had been.

"Oh, my baby," she exclaimed.

I struggled against her grasp, suddenly feeling extremely claustrophobic and tense. There were too many people witnessing this. I bit my lip hard for one moment, tasting blood all over again. I could feel Brady tense beneath me.

"Mom," I whispered. "Mom, I'm okay. Please, stop crying."

I sounded like a robot that had been smoking for forty years. My throat was killing me, my head had its own heartbeat that echoed in my ears, and my hands were still bleeding all over Brady's chest.

Uncle Seth came to my rescue. He grabbed ahold of my mother and gave her a quick squeeze to his side, shooting a helpless look over his shoulder to my father, who started down the steps towards us.

While my father tried to console my mother, Will and Collin had made their way over to us. Will clapped Brady on the shoulder once, giving him a grim smile and Collin's hand was on the top of my head once more.

Dad looked over my mother's head to catch Brady's attention. "Carlisle is just getting here. Take her in and we'll meet you there momentarily."

Without one single moment of hesitation, Brady started towards the house. Will and Collin flanked us like they were glued to Brady's side and I barely had a moment to protest to the fact that I was being carried around like a doll before we were through the front door and up the stairs.

When we reached the kitchen, Uncle Jake, Aunt Nessie, and a blonde haired, fair skinned man I didn't recognize were waiting for us. Uncle Jake did little to hide his pissed off expression as he took in the sorry sight of me in Brady's secure arms. He turned away, muttering a string of curse words under his breath that I could almost hear.

"Wow, Jake," Collin laughed. "Do you kiss your wife with that potty mouth?"

Uncle Jake let out a deep growl and he pinched his nose between his fingers.

Will smacked Collin over the top of his head. "Shut up."

Collin turned to the younger wolf, raising an eyebrow. "That's the second time you've told me to do something today," he intoned in a carefully calm voice. "Want to go for a third?"

"For fuck's sake, Collin," Brady snarled.

Collin glared at Brady now. "Come on, man—"

A shrill whistle sounded through the room.

"Enough!" Aunt Nessie shouted. "Now is not the time for any of this. Look at the poor girl, for goodness sake."

I hadn't realized I was holding my head in my hand until the room went quiet. I looked up in surprise, seeing everyone looking in my direction, including Uncle Jake, who looked much calmer now.

Arms crossed over his broad and bare chest, Uncle Jake motioned to the open door with his chin. "Out, both of you. Go run the perimeter of the house until Embry tells you to be somewhere else."

Will immediately headed out the door, nodding towards his leader with a serious expression on his face. He was in patrol mode now. I supposed that was the one thing about Will—he could be a total ass, but he knew when he was supposed to take things seriously, too.

Collin had yet to master those skills.

"But—"

Brady, who was still holding onto me, was starting to lose his patience with his friend. "Get the fuck out, Collin."

Funnily enough, it was the sharp order from Brady, instead of Uncle Jake, that had Collin heading out of the room. He stopped long enough to place a gentle kiss to my forehead, before he was out the door and down the stairs. I heard the door slam loudly behind him.

The room was silent for what seemed like a long moment.

Brady was breathing heavily into my hair. His warm breath made gooseflesh down my arms.

"Brady, you good?" Uncle Jake asked. He cautiously made one step in our direction.

Brady took a deep breath and then placed a kiss on the back of my head. "I'm good."

The other man, who had been completely silent through all the chaos, looked up from where he'd been digging through a black bag. He smiled at me and I took in his pale, hard skin and buttery eyes. It was easy enough to see the resemblance between Nessie and her grandfather, but at this moment, that didn't seem to matter to my brain. All that my mind took in was that there was yet another unfamiliar vampire in my presence and I wanted nothing to do with him.

Everyone around me seemed to take in my increased heartbeat at the same moment, thanks to their heightened senses. My fingers were gripped tightly around Brady's forearm, which felt completely unyielding around my body.

I shook my head, wanting my bearings back. I couldn't remember what was normal and what wasn't any more. Everything was muddled in my mind.

"Let me go," I pleaded with Brady.

The boy holding onto me shushed me quietly and brought my body closer to his. "Lills—"

"No," I cried loudly. "I froze before. I'm not going to this time."

Brady opened his mouth to assure me, but no words came out. He looked utterly confused at my words and his sudden distraction gave me a chance to fumble out of his grip a little. My legs hit the floor and immediately gave out under my weight and despite Brady's current confusion; he still caught me before I smacked my head open on the floor.

Uncle Jake, however, did not look confused at all. He bent down so he was eye level to me and brushed some hair away from my face. "Lilly, sweetheart, this is Nessie's grandfather. This is Carlisle. You know him."

I squeezed my eyes shut, shaking my head again. "No—"

"I would never let anyone hurt you, sweetheart," Uncle Jake was murmuring. He didn't seem to care that I refused to look at him or that I was acting like a deranged toddler. I bet his son, Toby, had better manners than I did right now. And he was only three.

Aunt Nessie chimed in softly. "Carlisle is a doctor, Lilly. He works in hospitals with humans every day. He's my family just like you are and he would _never_ hurt you."

My head was throbbing like never before right now and I grimaced tightly, unable to respond to anything anyone was saying. Brady's arms came tighter around me then, feeling my urge to flee and fight his contact fade out of my body. His lips were at my temple as he spoke to me, softly as ever.

"Do you really think I would be standing here if I didn't trust this man?" Brady whispered against my skin. The warmth from his lips seemed to suck away some of the pain radiating from my skull and I allowed myself to lean against him a little. "I'll be right here the whole time, okay."

After a second, I nodded in consent. I was much too tired to fight any more.

"Brady, you can lift her right onto the table," Carlisle's musical voice said.

With my eyes closed, I felt myself being transferred onto the wood surface of the kitchen table, which was situated in the middle of the room. Brady stayed close, despite the fact that his arms were no longer around me, and his palm rested in the middle of my back, rubbing circles into my shirt.

Carlisle turned to smile at me carefully. "You've certainly grown since the last time I saw you, Lilly."

I smiled politely and tried to find something else to look at, feeling uncomfortable.

"I promise you no harm," Carlisle continued. "I just want to check your injuries."

"Okay," I said and my voice sounded small.

Brady's hand rubbed up and down my back once.

As Carlisle began to ask me a few questions, Aunt Nessie excused herself from the room. At the same time, my father slipped in to stand next to Uncle Jake. He looked tense. I wondered where my mother was.

"How about we start with what happened?" the doctor was asking me. I supposed I should have been paying better attention.

The memory of what happened in my backyard seemed fuzzy, but I tried to recall what I could. "He—he was in the backyard and I knew that I was supposed to stay in the house but I ended up on the back deck." I closed my eyes, trying to remember everything. "I couldn't move, but he could and he ended up really close to me—"

Brady was trembling beside me; I could feel the motion against my body. He wasn't looking at me and his left fist was clenched so tightly I thought he might break his fingers off. Without thinking, I reached around him to grab his hand, wrapping my fingers around his own.

The vibrating subsided.

My father broke the careful silence. "Do you need to go outside for a moment?"

I wasn't really sure whom he was talking to.

"I'm fine."

Uncle Jake sighed. "Brady—"

Brady closed his eyes tightly for a moment before he was looking at the two men across the room. "I _said_ that I'm okay. I'm not leaving her side, not even for a second."

Dad raised his eyebrows but nodded carefully.

Carlisle told me to continue.

"—So then he did this _thing_ and I could move again and the numbness was gone, but it was like—like my body wasn't used to working for itself, so I collapsed. I think," I took a deep breath, struggling to concentrate. "I think I hit my head on the deck? I don't really remember."

Brady smoothed his thumb over the top of my hand. "It's okay," he assured me.

I was momentarily distracted by the fact that Brady seemed to be able to know how I was feeling even though I hadn't said anything aloud. He was almost magnetized to my side and I wasn't sure if the buzz flowing through my body was from my lousy head injury or his close proximity.

"Well, let's do a couple tests then, shall we?" Carlisle announced, interrupting my thoughts.

Sometime later, between Brady's harsh growls and threats, Uncle Jake's frustration, my father's careful warnings, and my unkempt blubbering, Carlisle came to a diagnosis. With stitches in the back of my head and my palms bandaged, I sat in the middle of Aunt Nessie's squishy, king-sized bed, feeling out of place and exhausted.

My head no longer throbbed, thanks to the strong drugs Carlisle had brandished my way, but my mind still felt like it had gone on vacation and left my body behind.

 _Shock_ , was what Carlisle had called it. I was apparently in shock.

According to Uncle Jake, the pack was still searching for the intruding vampire, so we were better off staying here until they'd finished up. He assured me that Brady would stay with me and that two wolves would be outside the house in case anything happened. He helped Brady get me into the bedroom and hugged me carefully to his warm chest before he'd disappeared to lend a hand to the pack.

Now, I was listening to my father apologize on behalf of everything that had happened.

"Quil got called into action," he was saying. His calloused hand rubbed my forehead as he smoothed back my hair away from my face. He no longer looked like the tense, uptight person he'd appeared to be when we first arrived, but instead like the reliable father I knew. "He should have found someone else to pick you up or he should have picked you up himself, darling, and I'm so sorry none of us told you what was happening."

I leaned back against the plush pillows. "It's not your fault, Dad. Stuff happens."

He gave a little smile, but I could tell he still felt guilty. "You're a brave girl, Lilly. I hope you know how proud your mom and I are of you."

He leaned down to press a kiss to my forehead before he headed out the door. My mother had already spent a good half-hour fluffing pillows and fretting over me before Aunt Nessie had come to my rescue and had asked her help with making a dinner for the pack. We'd be staying here for the night, or at least until the all clear was given by the pack.

"I love you, sweetheart," Dad murmured.

I smiled sleepily. "Love you too."

Brady slipped back into the room as my father disappeared. There was a brief interaction that I pretended not to see, but I could tell Brady didn't like what my father had to say. His shoulders were tense and stiff as he sat by my feet.

I was suddenly not so tired any more.

"Hey," he whispered, squeezing my foot through the blanket with his fingers.

I peered at him through my heavy eyelids, which were still fighting me. "Hi."

"You okay?" he asked, for probably the millionth time today.

I nodded, tracing a pattern on the bedspread with my fingertip so I wouldn't have to look his way. The air was stale and awkward for a long moment before I worked up the courage to say something.

"Are you upset with me?"

Brady inhaled sharply. "What? Why would you even ask that?"

I shrugged, unable to explain myself to him. I couldn't even imagine how I awful I would feel if it turned out that he was angry with me. I couldn't bear it.

The bed dipped next to me—Brady had moved from the spot by my feet to directly beside me. His strong arm came around my shoulders and I found myself tucked into his side. I sucked in an unsteady breath.

"Hey," Brady breathed softly. His fingertips found my chin and tilted my face up to his. I let the swirls in his eyes suck me in and it didn't take long for me to get lost. It was like I could see his soul through his eyes. They were one of the most addicting things about him. "Why on Earth would you think that I was mad?"

"The vampire got away," I whispered immediately.

He gave a gentle chuckle and the bed rocked a little. "Sweetheart," he soothed. "There is nothing in the world that is less to do with you than that single sentence right there." His eyes were kind as he gave me his complete attention. "That vampire got away because he was gifted, Lilly. He had a gift—that's why you—" He sucked in a breath. "—Why you were _drawn_ to him. It's why you couldn't control your movements."

Carlisle and his son, Edward—Aunt Nessie's father—had explained to us that some vampires had gifts. Apparently the pack had already known this, but this was something I had never heard before. They suspected the vampire in the backyard had some sort of mental ability to control people's movements, which was how I had ended up on the deck. It was why when he'd released his gift that I'd fallen so harshly.

According to Edward, it was part of his fun—unleashing and releasing the mind tricks on people to get them so disoriented that they didn't know which way was up.

At this moment, I certainly felt like his fool plan had worked. I was much more than disoriented.

Brady's thumb brushed across my cheek several times and my face immediately felt warm. I looked at him once more.

"I am not mad at you," he promised, saying the words I needed to hear. "I could _never_ be mad at you."

I chewed on my lip, thinking. It was still sore and Carlisle had said that I was lucky my teeth hadn't gone right through it.

Brady's thumb appeared on my lip, pulling it away from my teeth. Warmth filled the pit of my stomach and I could hear my breath in my ears. "Don't hurt yourself," he pleaded, though his breath was a bit shaky too.

I could feel myself fading a little, but I wanted to talk more with Brady. This was the most I'd seen him in a few days and despite the circumstances, I couldn't imagine being anywhere else right now.

Suddenly, Brady pulled me closer. He cleared his throat a little and I swore, I could see more emotion filled up in his eyes than I'd ever seen before. His lips were in my hair as he spoke. "I have never been more scared, you know?" he whispered. "To see you there, with that vampire in front of you."

I closed my eyes, urging my tears to stay at bay. "I was scared, too," I admitted.

"He won't ever touch you again, sweetheart," he murmured sweetly. His hand smoothed my hair, mindful of my stitches. "I swear to you, I'll kill anyone that touches you."

I nodded, turning my head against his shoulder.

There was a moment of hesitation before I left Brady's lips on my cheek, very, very close to the corner of my mouth. I froze in both shock and anticipation. Kisses from Brady weren't anything out of the ordinary, but they never strayed farther than a peck on the top of the head or on my forehead. He'd never kissed my cheek before.

"I want you to know," he whispered softly. "You are the most precious thing to me, Lilly. I would do anything for you. I love you so much."

Now. I could tell him right now. Now, was the time to tell him how I felt. I'd been sitting on my feelings for months, fighting my emotions. I couldn't tell myself that it was wrong any more because no matter if it were wrong or right, it wasn't going to change anything.

 _Tell him_ , I thought. _Just tell him how you feel_.

"I love you too, Brady," I whispered back.

I wanted to kick myself. Why? Why couldn't I just man up and tell him what I felt? Sure, I did love him, but did he really know what kind of _love_ I meant?

His brown eyes flashed, darkening in a way that I'd never known them to do before. It was the quickest change in colour and I wondered if I imagined it, because the next time I looked, they were their normal brown colour once more. A small smile had etched it's way onto Brady's handsome face and he pulled the blankets closer to my chin, though I was plenty warm enough with him being so close.

"Why don't you have a little nap?" he suggested. "I'm sure you're tired."

"I'm okay."

Brady helped me slide further down against the pillows, despite my protests.

"You don't have anything to worry about, okay?" he assured me. "I won't leave your side and I'll wake you if anything exciting happens, like if Will beats up Collin or something."

I giggled, like I knew he intended me to.

"Come on," he whispered. "Just sleep, sweetheart."

Because I really _was_ tired and I knew he wouldn't leave me alone, I allowed my eyes to close. I was just going to close them and pretend to sleep. I didn't want anything to happen while I was truly asleep.

Brady's hand combed through my hair and quickly, I began to lose the battle against sleep. It wasn't long before I was right on the edge, tipping towards slumber.

"I'm right here," Brady murmured, kissing my forehead. "I'm always going to be here."

As I fell asleep, I couldn't help but hope that was true.

Not having Brady at my side wasn't exactly an option any longer.

* * *

 **I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Thank goodness, Brady is starting to show the imprint pull a little more now. Hopefully, Lilly will find out about the imprint soon ;)**

 **Review. Please.**


	8. Chapter 8

**And, the regular updates just keep on coming ;)**

 **So does the drama! Enjoy!**

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The next time I woke up, I was in my own bedroom. Cocooned in more blankets than I was used to, I attempted to roll myself into an upright position, gasping softly at the pain that exuded from the middle of my forehead. Wincing, I brought a hand up to touch the side of my head, only to be distracted by the large wrapping of gauze around my palm.

It only took a moment before the memories of what had happened yesterday came back to me in a full-blown wave. I barely managed to get my legs out from underneath the millions of blankets that swarmed me, before I was hurling my bedroom door open and lunging across the hallway into the bathroom. I threw my body down in front of the toilet and was immediately violently sick.

Heavy footsteps pounded up the stairs and came to a stop outside the bathroom door, which I'd hastily tried to close behind me, but had obviously not succeeded in doing so. The large forms of Quil and Uncle Embry stood outside in the hallway, looking concerned.

I wanted to yell at them to go away, but I was too busy heaving. The pale blue walls of the bathroom were spinning around me and heat pinpricked my clammy skin in the most uncomfortable way. I felt like I couldn't breathe.

"Shit," I heard Quil say.

A set of warm hands reached my forehead as I struggled to hold my body up. I knew it had to be Uncle Embry, because there was no way in hell that Quil would ever step foot into the bathroom while I was throwing up all over the place. One of Embry's hands corralled my hair out of my face, holding it behind my neck, while the other stroked my forehead.

After a moment, my body seemed to collapse in on itself and I had to grip the seat to keep from face planting. With my eyes closed, I fumbled for the handle. The air was thick and awkward and I thought I might be sick all over again just because I was so embarrassed.

Uncle Embry, who actually happened to be my real uncle because he was my father's half brother, was still standing behind me. He was saying something, because I heard Quil answer to whatever it was, but I couldn't make any sense of what they were saying. My ears were roaring much too loudly.

Without warning, I was in the air. Uncle Embry's arms were warm and soft around me as he lifted me off the bathroom floor and carried me across the hallway back to my bedroom. The room was dark and it took my eyes a few moments to adjust. I could vaguely see Quil standing in the doorway, looking somewhat concerned.

That was when I knew I had lost my mind. Quil was never concerned—not unless it had anything to do with my cousin. Then, he was a basket case.

"Emb—" I said, but my words felt as garbled as my mind was.

My uncle leaned down to kiss my forehead, before he pulled the blankets back around my body and up to my chin. I shivered and I hadn't realized I was cold until now. My eyes closed on their own accord.

"Sleep, kiddo," Uncle Embry murmured. I felt the bed dip and I knew he was sitting next to me. "I'll be right here."

He didn't have to tell me twice. I was asleep within seconds.

When I woke again, it was light outside. The long curtains that covered my bedroom window were still drawn, but through my squinty eyes, I could see daylight. My head felt stuffy and there was still a palpitating pressure that made me want to claw my brain right out of my skull, but I no longer felt like I was going to throw up.

I sat up carefully, only to realize I wasn't alone. I blinked in surprise to see Brady's tall figure crammed onto my desk chair, his long legs stretched out before him. His eyes were closed.

Breathing deeply, I took this moment to selfishly let my eyes run over him. I rarely got the chance to study Brady like I always wanted to—either we were surrounded by too many people or I chickened out because I didn't think I was stealthy enough to not get caught. But, right now, while he was asleep, I took everything in.

He really was handsome. He had a naturally thin face with prominent features—his nose, his chin, his cheekbones; they all were chiseled to perfection. His inky, black hair was windblown and messy and I itched to run my fingers through it. My eyes travelled lower, finding his bare, carefully muscled chest and arms, which, besides his bottomless eyes, were my favourite part of him. Just looking at him and imagining those arms coming around me, I felt safe, secure.

Yes, I was ogling my older and self-proclaimed (idiotically and regretfully) best-friend while he was sleeping in my bedroom. I could officially say that I had a problem.

The moment passed too quickly and as if he could feel my eyes on him, he startled awake. He blinked rapidly, rubbing a hand over his eyes once before he straightened up in the chair. His back and neck cracked as he moved, causing me to wince at the painful-sounding noise. Yawning, he cast a glance in my direction and I saw his eyes widen when he realized I was awake.

He hopped into a standing position and hurried to my bedside. "Hey, sweetheart," he murmured gently. His hand found my forehead as he leaned over me. I couldn't help but lean into his touch.

I didn't say anything as his thumb brushed across my cheek. He scrutinized me carefully and I felt my face warm at his intense gaze. As if realizing what he was doing for the first time, his hands disappeared off me and he sat at my feet. There was now a definite line of space between us and I could feel myself twitch, wanting to cross over that line.

What in the world was wrong with me?

"Are you feeling better?" Brady asked, concern taking over his features.

I didn't answer him right away, because now, up close, I could see things about him I hadn't noticed before. I didn't miss the way his skin was pinched at the corners of his eyes and the creases in his forehead, like he was thinking extremely hard about something. There were prominent bags beneath his eyes that told me he hadn't slept much in the last twenty-four hours. He looked permanently exhausted.

I immediately felt completely responsible.

Brady ducked his head for a moment, breaking our distinct eye contact. I watched as he looked to the far corner of my bedroom and seemed to take a deep, grounding breath. I dimly wondered if my own unyielding gaze had too caused this calculated reaction out of him and for a brief moment, I felt somewhat satisfied that I could affect him as much as he always seemed to affect me.

"Does your head still hurt?" he asked suddenly. I realized I hadn't answered him yet.

I took a moment to take inventory of how my body was feeling. My head still felt like it weighed a million pounds and that my neck was having a hard time holding it up, but other than that I was feeling relatively normal. My hands were still covered in gauze and it felt like I had a ton of tiny little paper cuts all over my palms, but compared to the alternative, it wasn't exactly something I couldn't handle.

"I'm good," I told him quietly.

His brown eyes scrutinized my face carefully, like he didn't believe a word I said. I tried to smile at him, hoping to reassure whatever doubt he was feeling, but I wasn't sure how successful I was.

"Maybe you should sleep a little longer," he said hesitantly.

I rolled my eyes and attempted to sit up a little bit more. My head spun a little and I did my best to keep from swaying right off the bed, squeezing my eyes closed tightly. _Ugh_ , _head rush._

"Lills—" I felt his warm hand caress my cheek, his fingers so faint it was almost like he had tried not to touch my face, but had failed to refrain from doing so.

I forced a smile, opening my eyes. "I'm okay, Bray—really. And, I don't want to sleep anymore. I feel like I've been sleeping forever."

Brady didn't look convinced. "You didn't sleep that much," he protested.

My eyes found my alarm clock, which was sitting on my desk across the room. The numbers blinked blearily at me, but I could somewhat make out the time. I groaned with disbelief and turned to glare lightly at Brady.

"It's not even morning anymore," I complained in my whiniest tone. I was the type of person that hated sleeping in too late, always feeling like I wasted my entire day.

Brady rolled his eyes. "You needed to sleep, Lills. Relax."

I sighed and swung my legs over the side of my bed. Once I was on my feet, I wobbled a little, and out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Brady step closer to me, looking concerned.

"I'm good," I said again.

I stumbled over to my closet to grab out an old hoodie of Brady's to throw on over my pyjama shirt, though I couldn't remember ever changing out of my clothes from the day before. I pulled the hoodie over my head and sighed, as my hair became a frizzy mess after doing so. Smoothing down my hair with my fingers, I looked up, feeling Brady's eyes on me.

"What?" I asked quietly, shyly.

He shook his head, as if removing himself from the stupor he'd been trapped within. He smiled, though it looked forced, and there was an emotion running through his eyes that I couldn't quite put my finger on.

There was something going on with him, I was sure of it.

"Nothing, honey," he assured me.

I crossed my arms over my chest, raising my eyebrows. "Bray—"

He mocked my position, a small smirk appearing on his face. "Lilly."

Although I knew he was avoiding whatever was going on, I didn't want to fight with him. Not now, not after everything that had just happened. I wanted him to hold onto me and never let me go, but I was guessing by the calculating look on his face, that wasn't going to happen right at this moment.

Feeling slightly annoyed by his evasiveness, I pushed past him gently and opened my bedroom door. The sudden onslaught of sunlight caught me off guard—I hadn't realized how dark it had truly been in my room—and I had to grab the doorframe a little roughly in order to keep myself balanced. I felt Brady's fingers grip my shoulder, firmly yet softly all at once. His breath was warm on the back of my neck and my body buzzed at his closeness.

"Are you—"

I gritted my teeth. "If you ask me one more time if I'm okay, I'm going to hit you with a baseball bat."

I supposed it was a little harsh, but I was suddenly feeling incredibly moody. I loved Brady—more than I was willing to admit—but he always got like this any moment that I got injured or sick. It was nice that he cared so much, but I was starting to feel smothered. I could only imagine how the rest of my family was going to react.

There was the sound of stifled laughter downstairs. _Great_. Everyone was here.

Brady insisted on helping me down the stairs, which I was _not_ thrilled about. But, I could see on his face that I had somewhat upset him with my sharp words, so I allowed him. Truth be told, I was feeling a little unsteady on my feet. I decided to blame it on my sharp headache and the fact that I had slept nearly an entire day away.

My mother dropped whatever she was doing to pull me into her soft embrace the moment I stepped foot into the kitchen. I was a little surprised by myself as I allowed her to squeeze me for a moment longer than normal, put to ease by her smell of cinnamon and her favourite flowery perfume my father always got for her. After a moment, she pulled back, holding me at arm's length so she could carefully look me over.

"How are you feeling, baby?" she asked, smoothing her palm across my forehead.

The kitchen was quite busy, which was normal. My father had been sitting at the head of the table, flipping through the newspaper when I'd walked in, but now he was standing at the edge of the fridge, watching my mother and I interact. I knew he was waiting for his turn to ask me a million questions, which I wouldn't be able to avoid no matter how hard I tried. My mother and I were close, but it was my father that I seemed to rely on most. We had a special connection and I could hardly defy him.

Collin, Quil, Claire and Uncle Seth sat at the kitchen table. Collin was watching Brady like a hawk, who was still standing in the doorway, just out of arm's reach. His eyes strayed to me for a quick second and then immediately back to Brady. He was uncharacteristically quiet, which was a little frightening.

My cousin, still dressed in her pajamas herself, was muttering quietly to her imprint sitting next to her. They both still had plates full of food sitting before them and Quil was glaring at his like it might jump up and take a bite out of him. He seemed to be ignoring Claire, which I knew would only infuriate her more.

The only normal one out of the bunch was my uncle, who looked about thirty seconds away from falling asleep. His head was leaning back against the yellow wall behind him and he was rubbing his forehead between his fingers, like he was suffering from a terrible headache.

I knew the feeling.

"Lilly, sweetheart," Mom murmured. She cupped my cheek in her soft hand, demanding my attention. "Did you sleep okay? Carlisle left you some more pain meds, do you need one?"

I shook my head and forced a smile. "I'm okay, Mom. Thanks."

She shot me a concerned glance before she brushed a thumb across my cheekbone. She made her way over to the stove once more, casting a knowing look at my father as she past him. Before anyone else could say something, she turned to look at me again, using her wooden spoon as a sceptre. "I expect you to be mature enough to take some medication if your headache gets worse," she said in a no nonsense tone.

I merely nodded in her direction, feeling embarrassed.

Dad was more concerned with checking out my stitches than anything else. Apparently my parents didn't seem to mind embarrassing the crap out of me in front of everyone. Neither one of them bothered to keep their voices down as they asked me questions, leaving no chance for anyone to miss what they were saying.

I suddenly wanted to go back to bed.

"Sit," Dad instructed me after a moment. He gestured to the open chair in front of me. "Your mother is making you breakfast."

"I'm not hungry," I answered quickly, though I did sit in the chair he held out for me. I felt Brady's presence next to me again, pulling out the chair closest to mine. Guilt stewed in my stomach when he didn't even look in my direction.

"You're going to eat anyway," Dad told me as he joined Mom at the stove.

"Dad," I grumbled lightly.

Claire nudged my shin under the table, her eyes warning me. I tried to mouth to her, wanting to know what the hell was going on around here, but Collin was now staring at me and I knew he wouldn't keep his big mouth shut. I clenched my teeth, glaring at the table.

The front door banged open then and several voices made their way through the house. No one ever knocked around here and it wasn't really a surprise that more people would come around. Though, I was surprised as Will's parents, Paul and Rachel, descended into the room.

My mother looked pleasantly surprised. She beamed at my aunt, reaching around my father to give her a quick squeeze. "I wasn't expecting you guys today," I heard her say.

Uncle Paul shook my father's hand quickly and then leaned down to press a kiss to the top of my head. I smiled at him gently, feeling distracted by the subdued mood surrounding the table.

If he said anything to me, I didn't notice. My finger traced a line in the large wood tabletop.

"So, where is this wolf-abusing baseball bat you keep, Lills?" Collin teased.

This was normal Collin behaviour, but I could tell by the look on his face that his heart was totally in it. His eyes kept moving in Brady's direction, as if he was waiting for his friend to spontaneously combust right next to me. Still, I took the bait.

"That's for me to know and for you to only find out should you get on my bad side," I told him, eyes still on the table.

Plates of food appeared in front of both Brady and I. My stomach turned at the thought of eating anything at all, but knowing my parents would put up a huge fit if I didn't, I forced myself to swallow a bite of French toast.

"Claire," my mother said. "Eat."

My cousin gritted her teeth. "I told you I wasn't hungry."

"And I told you if you don't finish your food that you're not going anywhere today," Mom retorted back just as icily.

Claire waited until everyone was occupied before she shoved half of her food onto Quil's plate. He sent her a warning glance, shaking his head the tiniest bit, before he picked up his fork and started shovelling down his own food like it was the biggest effort in the entire world.

Everyone was acting really strangely. I mean, Claire was always moody, but she was _never_ moody with Quil. They fought on the occasion, but it was usually a World War 3 kind of thing that started with a lot of yelling and then a lot of making out that made me want to claw my eyes out. They never acted like this. Claire looked like she wanted to murder someone and Quil looked like someone had boiled his puppy.

And Collin looked like he was prepared to go to war. His eyes were stuck on Brady, like he couldn't help but stare at him. He didn't look very happy and no matter how long he waited for Brady to meet his gaze, he didn't. I was waiting for him to reach across the table to throttle him.

If he did, I might actually break out the baseball bat.

"Did you want to come to Port Angeles?" Rachel asked my mother. "We have a couple errands and I could really use some furniture advice from someone who isn't Paul."

They had just moved into their new house that my uncle had built with the help of his lumbering company, and I knew my aunt was itching to get it properly furnished.

"Babe—" My uncle protested.

Rachel patted him on the chest, silencing him. I saw my father chuckle behind his cup of coffee.

Mom cast a glance at the table. "I don't know, Rach," she fretted. "I think we better stick around here today, after everything that's happened."

I huffed a sigh, stabbing my fork into my breakfast with a little more force than necessary.

"We won't be long," Auntie Rachel continued. "Seriously, you could use a day out of the house."

Claire decided it would be smart to speak up then. "C'mon, Auntie Em, we'll be fine here."

Mom glared at my cousin. "You just want me out of the house so you can convince Quil to take you out, after I _specifically_ told you that you weren't going."

I had apparently missed something, I decided, as I watched my cousin slam back her chair into the wall and storm out of the kitchen. Everyone was silent as we heard the telltale sound of her bedroom door slamming closed.

Quil winced and his fingers gripped the tabletop a little roughly.

"Maybe a day out wouldn't be such a bad idea," Mom said suddenly.

I could have kissed my aunt; I was so overjoyed.

Was I actually going to get a smother-free day?

* * *

 **Thanks guys! Please review :)**


	9. Chapter 9

**Thanks for reading everyone! Would love to get this story to 100 reviews before the next chapter!**

 **** Someone messaged me and asked about the imprint between Brady and Lilly, so I just want to clarify a few things!**

 **\- Lilly is the ONLY one that does not know about the imprint**

 **\- Sam and Emily want Brady to wait until after her eighteenth birthday to tell her about it (though not sure that he'll be able to hold out that long)**

 **\- Lilly is 16 and Brady hasn't aged since he was thirteen, so although he is technically a lot older, I don't feel so bad about developing their relationship further in a more, "romantic" direction because of this. So, yes, before the end of this story, they will be more than just "friends".**

 **(If Lilly forgives him for not telling her about the imprint)**

 **Hope that clears everything up for everyone!**

* * *

Even without my mother here to make sure I wasn't going to "overdo" anything, with the way everyone else was acting, it was as if she was still here.

She had allowed my aunt to coax her and my father out of the house, but not before she had left strict instructions for my "babysitters". I had tried to tell her that I could take care of myself, but she had wanted nothing to do with that. Only when my father had made them promise to call his cell phone should anything go wrong, was he able to get her out the front door.

The house was a lot quieter now and I relished in the comfortable silence. Uncle Seth had gone home to sleep, claiming we were too loud and distracting for him to get any actual shut-eye. He had shook my father's hand, kissed my mother's cheek, and told me not to do anything stupid, before he had promptly jogged out the back door.

I was then left alone with three sullen looking werewolves and my bitchy cousin.

I was doing my best to ignore everyone. I sat in the corner spot on the couch, stretched out with a pillow under my head and a thick blanket over my body. Despite the fact that all the boys ran a toasty 108 degrees, I was always cold. We hardly used the heat in the house, because then it would be like a sauna around here, so whenever it got a little drafty with the cooler outdoor temperatures, I always found myself having to bundle up, even indoors.

Normally, I would have just cuddled up against one of the boys, preferably Brady, but I didn't sense that was an option at this point. Collin was still having a staring contest with Brady's forehead and Quil wouldn't even look in my direction. Which was fine; except I had totally prepared myself for a usual onslaught of jokes about my lacking appearance. It was totally unlike Quil to remain so quiet and somber.

Finally, I couldn't take it any more. I reached across the two cushions between Quil and I to nudge him with my big toe. He jumped, like he'd forgotten where he was and cast a questioning look in my direction.

"What?" he snapped and then immediately looked guilty. His voice had held a lot more bite than I had anticipated and I was suddenly unsure of whether I wanted to get into this right now.

Brady let out a soft growl from across the room. Quil glared at him quickly, before looking back at me.

"What's wrong with everyone?" I exclaimed.

"Nothing," Quil said, looking away. His eyes found the TV, which was playing some old black and white movie.

I crossed my arms. "That's bullshit."

"Lilly," Brady protested quietly. I ignored him.

I waited, staring at Quil. Despite the fact that he was not my favourite person in the entire world, the way he was acting was affecting my family. There was obviously something going on between my cousin and him and although I knew it was none of my business, there was nothing else I was actually allowed to do around here. I might as well play relationship counselor.

"I need to talk to Quil alone," I stated.

Brady immediately shook his head. "No."

Collin was on his feet, though. "Come on, Bray, she'll be fine."

Brady shook his head again and his fingers clenched at his sides. "No, Collin."

Taking a deep breath, I forced myself to look at Brady. I watched emotion swirl in his eyes and his face was drawn and tense. He looked so utterly angry and exhausted that my heart ached.

But, I had to deal with one problem at a time. Quil's attitude was easier to deal with.

"Please, Brady," I whispered.

His shoulders relaxed for a mere moment as he studied my face. After a second, he gave one terse nod at me before he glared at Quil once more. "Five minutes. Don't upset her."

Quil rolled his eyes at him.

Once Collin was able to pull Brady out of the room and out the back door, I turned to face my cousin's boyfriend. He looked tired, probably as tired as I was, and it made him look a lot older. He was fidgety in his spot, like he couldn't get his body to sit still. There was the tell tale start of a tremble in his fingertips and I had to force back the feeling of fear in my gut. Quil might not have been my favourite person, but he had been phasing for a long time. He had good control.

"What's going on with you and my cousin?" I asked him, getting right to the point.

He scrubbed at his face with his fingers. "She's mad at me."

"Why?"

He shot me a look of frustration. "Has anyone ever told you that you're annoying?"

I gritted my teeth to keep from saying something I would regret. "Yes, _you_ have. Now spill, wolf-boy."

He leaned back against the couch heavily. "She's mad because she thinks that if I had picked you up from school the other day, you wouldn't have had to face that leech alone. And then you wouldn't have gotten hurt."

I blinked, surprised. That wasn't what I had expected to come out of his mouth.

"And, I can't tell her any different, because she's probably right."

I opened my mouth and then closed it, unsure of what to say. This was a side of Quil I had never seen before. Quil was never one to take the blame for anything, but he was definitely the one to dish it out. I had been expecting something entirely different to be the source of his discomfort.

"That's not true," I said softly.

He shot me a look and scoffed a bitter laugh. "Come on, Lil. I was supposed to pick you up from school on Friday and I totally bailed because of that leech."

I shrugged, not seeing his point. "You were just doing your job, Quil."

I had been mad at Quil before. When he hadn't picked me up at school the other day, I thought he had simply decided not to just to be a pain in the ass. But, once I'd learned the truth, there was really nothing to blame him about. His job was to protect La Push from uninvited vampires, not to worry about whether his imprint's cousin got home from school in one piece.

"That's just it, though," Quil muttered. "My _job_ was not to go after that leech. My job was to make sure you were safe. And I didn't do that."

I wasn't used to having to reassure someone else. I felt uncomfortable practicing my skills on someone like Quil, whom I wasn't exactly close with. "You didn't know he would show up here. No one did."

He met my gaze then. "Lilly, you and I may not see eye-to-eye all the time, but that doesn't mean I don't care about you. And no matter what you or Embry—or _anyone_ —says about it, this was my fault. I should have picked you up and gotten you somewhere safe and then worried about helping the rest of the pack with the hunt."

I chewed on my lip, stewing on his words a little. I had always been the type of person that tried my best to please everyone. The way Quil was feeling right now was eating up my insides, because I knew it was my fault, not his. It was my fault that I had gotten into it with that vampire and it was my fault that I'd gotten hurt, not Quil's or anyone else's.

So, I told him that.

He stared at me in disbelief. "I don't think you get this whole pack thing, Lil."

I squeezed my fingers together tightly. "Sure, I do. Your job is to protect the tribe from vampires. You chose to go after the threat, who could have hurt _anyone_ on this reservation. He could have hurt several people, even. It makes way more sense to think about protecting the rest of our people, rather than just worrying about me."

Quil looked frustrated, which I didn't understand. "Yeah, but, Lilly you're not _just_ one person. We protect everyone, but imp—" He trailed off, looking away quickly.

I felt even more confused now. "But, what?" I asked.

He shook his head. "Nothing, it's nothing."

I made a frustrated noise. "Quil…"

He reached over to pat my knee absently. "You're probably right, kid. I just wish Claire would feel the same way you do."

I didn't miss how he suddenly changed his tune, but happy to be near a climax to this conversation, I decided to follow his lead. "She'll get over it. Besides, you guys got him, right? So, it's not like anyone has to worry about it anymore."

Quil hesitated and his eyes found the ceiling.

I stared at him, dumbfounded. "Wait," I whispered hoarsely.

Seeing the look of panic begin to grow on my face, he got to his feet, heading towards the kitchen. "I think this is maybe something you should talk to Brady about."

As he disappeared out of the room and towards the backdoor, I felt hot and cold at the same time. My body was shaking and I brought my knees up to my chest, gripping the blanket tightly between my fists. I could hear voices coming closer to me, but I couldn't really focus on what they were saying. My vision was blurry and everything felt really far away. I felt like I was in a tunnel.

"Lilly."

Brady's hand found my chin. His warm fingers squeezed my face softly, demanding my attention. It took me a moment to meet his eyes and when I did, his gaze softened at whatever he saw on my face. Whatever uncomfortable vibe had been fusing between us an hour ago was long gone. I found myself pressed up against his warm chest and his arms came around me as I released a shuddering, shaky breath against his skin.

"You don't have to be scared," Brady murmured instantly. "I'll protect you, sweetheart. I promise."

I squeezed my eyes tightly together, allowing a few tears to sneak out. I wasn't so much scared for myself, though I was terrified of the thought of being left alone with a vampire now—not that I had been so comfortable with the idea before now.

But, as I held onto the boy next to me that seemed to own my heart since the moment I'd known him, I couldn't help but feel absolutely petrified.

Who would protect Brady?

* * *

 **Thanks guys, please review! 3**


	10. Chapter 10

**Hi everyone!**

 **I'm so sorry about the delay in updates. I have been really busy and I've had a very bad case of writer's block lately. I'm not giving up on this story and I hope none of you have either. There may not be regular updates all the time, but I will do my best to update as often as I possibly can.**

 **I want to thank everyone for sticking with me. Enjoy this chapter :)**

* * *

Aunt Kim and Uncle Jared's backyard was lit up like it was the Fourth of July.

Lanterns were strung along the fence and overhanging tree branches, glowing in amidst the setting sun. A bonfire was set in the middle of the yard and the flames stretched high towards the darkening sky. I stepped past the smatter of lawn chairs that had taken over the majority of the yard, returning greetings half-heartedly as I tried to find a quiet spot to sit.

I hadn't wanted to come to the party in the first place, but after my mother had lectured me about spending all my time in the house and that I was too young to become a permanent hermit, I'd allowed myself to be coerced into my father's truck later that evening.

I wasn't happy about it, though.

It was Kim and Jared's youngest daughter's thirteenth birthday, hence the large celebration. I didn't consider myself to be very close with any of the Camerons, but our parents were best friends, so it only made sense that we would be spending our Saturday night here.

I was a little surprised that they had decided to go along with the party after everything going on with the rogue vampire, though. The boys were spending more time in wolf form than not and the entire situation was grating on my nerves. However, Dad had told me tonight that everyone needed a distraction and that the yard was heavily patrolled, so there was no reason to worry.

But, I couldn't help myself.

I sat down in the far corner of the yard, trying to keep myself hidden beneath a large willow tree. All I wanted was a few minutes where I wasn't being watched like I might break down in a fashion that would put Britney Spears to shame. Not that I wasn't feeling it—the pressure of everything weighing me down like a giant anchor. It was safe to say I was barely treading water at this point.

I was mostly healed from my accident. Dad had taken me back to Uncle Jake's house so Nessie's father could remove my stitches and my concussion was pretty much gone. My house arrest had been removed, too. I _should_ have been feeling much better.

But, I wasn't.

I was finding that I was having a hard time moving past it all. I was barely sleeping at night, plagued by nightmares every time I closed my eyes. I could feel the wear and tear on my body caused my lack of sleep and just simple exhaustion. I knew my family was becoming concerned, though I refused to talk about it.

I just couldn't be that weak person that everyone had to protect all the time. For once, _I_ wanted to be the one doing the protecting. And, since it didn't look like I was going to phase any time soon, I figured keeping my stupid problems to myself was a good start.

A paper plate holding a giant piece of cake appeared in my peripheral vision and I blinked furiously, trying to shove my thoughts away for the time being. I grinned softly at the person before me, trying not to feel uneasy about the fact that I hadn't even noticed him walking up to me.

"Saved you a piece before Collin ate it all," he murmured as he sat down on the ground next to me.

I grabbed at the plate and immediately took a forkful of the chocolate-y goodness that was my mother's famous cake. "My hero," I sighed, pretending to swoon in his direction.

It worked. A full-fledged grin appeared on his handsome face.

We sat in comfortable silence for a while. I worked away on my cake until I felt so full that I would burst, passing it in his direction without a word. He'd already finished his own piece, but had no hesitation at packing mine away as well. I shook my head as he finished it in less than two bites. It was a wonder these boys didn't weigh as much as elephants with how much they were able to eat.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

I sighed.

It was the most daunting question he could have asked. _Did_ I want to talk about it? Did I want to talk about how I was more terrified of vampires now than I was when I had first found out they existed? Did I want to talk about how I couldn't remember the last time I had slept through the night without waking up to scream into my pillow so no one would hear me?

Did I want to talk about how I still refused to admit to myself that I was falling in love with the boy sitting next to me?

No. No, I did not.

His knee nudged my own gently. "Don't think so hard," he teased. "You might hurt yourself."

I rolled my eyes at him. "Gee. Thanks for that."

He slung his arm over my shoulders, giving me a squeeze that turned my insides all gooey. I couldn't help but lean into his warmth a little and the voices from the party around us became nothing but background noise.

"C'mon," he said. "I was just joking."

I heaved a sigh. "Yeah, I know."

Silence took over us once more. I knew Brady wanted to push for more information; he was never one to give up easily. I also knew that he was all for "respecting my privacy" and was probably trying to give me some space. I wasn't sure which one I wanted him to act on more.

I _did_ know that I was tired of hiding my feelings. I had known Brady for as long as I could remember and I swore from that very moment, he had been special to me. He had always been the most important person in my life and there was never a time I didn't want to be with him.

But, Brady was a werewolf and he had been since he was thirteen-years-old. From that time, I knew he had been waiting—and maybe even actively searching—for his imprint. An imprint was _so_ special to a wolf and Brady definitely deserved to have someone like that in his life.

I tensed, suddenly; feeling like my heart had just plummeted to the pit of my stomach because I had just realized that no matter how I felt about Brady, no matter how much I _loved_ him with every part of my being that he would never feel the same way. I was not his imprint—that much was obvious. It was also obvious that I would never be that special to him; never be what he was to me.

I had never hated werewolves before in my life, but right in this very instant, I _hated_ them.

Brady gave me a little shake. "Lills, are you alright?" he asked, sounding somewhat concerned.

I pulled away from him, feeling dizzy. I stood rather quickly, trying to ignore the fact that the backyard and the people in it, were spinning around me. Brady, having gotten to his feet too, reached out to steady me and I stepped out of his grasp.

Vaguely, I sensed that we were being watched. The backyard was not as loud as it had been. We had an audience.

Tears pricked my eyes and I had to swallow hard several times before I felt like I could actually breathe.

 _Brady would never love me back_.

It was like a bad mantra in my head; like a horrible taste in my mouth.

"Lilly," Brady whispered. He seemed to want to comfort me, but considering I wouldn't let him near me, he didn't seem to know how.

I wrapped my arms around myself, as if I could hold myself together easier. "I—I need to go home."

Brady, now looking more confused than ever, reached for me again. "What's wrong?" he asked softly and the confusion in his tone just seemed to break my heart even more. "What—what did I do? I can fix it; whatever it is."

I hiccupped a sob, covering my mouth with my hand. "You can't fix it, Brady. No one can."

No one would be able to fix my broken heart.

Because, without getting to have Brady by my side for the rest of my life, it would always be broken.

* * *

 **So sad :(**

 **Sorry it was short, but it's about to get very interesting!**

 **Please review!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Brady POV:**

* * *

"Get up."

I huffed a groan and pulled the covers further up over my face. With the sunlight blocked and a thin mediator between the offending voice, and myself, it took me less than thirty seconds to drift back to sleep.

"I'm warning you, Bray," the offender continued.

I scoffed a sleepy laugh. "Do your worst," I told him, my voice rough like sandpaper.

There was a pause in action and then, I was airborne. I landed in a heap on the old, scratched up hardwood floor of my bedroom with a face-full of my mattress. I laid there, half considering going back to sleep where I was, and half impressed that he managed to flip my mattress _and_ catch me off guard by doing so.

I couldn't even find the energy to be mad at him for it.

"Well, you did your worst," I said in my monotone. "I'm going back to sleep now."

The mattress and the darkness it brought with it disappeared and then there was Collin, staring down at me with a pissed off expression on his tanned face. He wore a t-shirt that I vaguely recognized to be mine and a pair of worn jeans and his arms were crossed over his broad chest in what seemed to be frustration.

When had we taken a role reversal?

"What is wrong with you?" he asked me point blank.

I gave a humorless laugh. "A lot, apparently."

He gave me a swift kick in the back and I groaned, mumbling a curse at him as I tried to breathe like a normal person. As werewolves we had a high pain tolerance, but that didn't mean it still didn't hurt like a bitch when one of us induced pain on another.

"What the hell?" I gasped at him.

"What the hell?" he asked back at me. "How about 'what the hell are you still doing in bed?' Or, 'what the hell is up your ass?' Or—"

I rolled into a sitting position and leaned back against the wall behind me. "Okay, okay. I get it."

Collin glared at me profusely for a moment. "No, man, I really don't think you do."

I stared at him for a moment. I had known Collin for a really long time. He was my best friend, my right hand man; he was the one person that always had my back. And in all the years I had known him, I had never seen him like this. He was never the serious one out of the two of us and it was kind of strange to be on the opposite side of the lecture that I was normally on.

Like some weird, _Freaky Friday_ , voodoo crap. And I was a werewolf, for God's sake.

Leaning my head back against the wall, I closed my eyes and tried to be patient. "Okay, Collin," I said. "What are you so uptight about?"

"I was just wondering what you had done with my best friend?"

This time he really threw me for a loop. I opened my eyes and stared at him, puzzled. "Huh?"

He started to pace a little, which was a little strange, but I didn't want him to get sidetracked so I didn't comment on it.

"You see, _my_ best friend is an idiot—"

I rolled my eyes. "Wow, thanks buddy."

He crossed his arms again. "You didn't let me finish."

"Well, please do."

He nodded, looking so serious that it was starting to freak me out. " _As_ I was saying," he muttered. "My best friend is an _idiot_ , but the one thing he doesn't usually fuck up is his imprint. You know her? The fucking nicest person in the entire world that he _somehow_ ended up getting as a soul mate?"

A growl escaped me.

Collin smirked. "Oh, maybe you _do_ know her. About five foot six, hundred pounds soaking wet? She has this long, wavy black hair that almost has a blue tint to it…"

I leapt to my feet and reached out to throttle him, but he danced out of arm's length.

" _Don't_ talk about her," I snapped.

I knew that Collin and Lilly were friends—good friends, at that. I knew that their friendship had originally stemmed from the fact that I had imprinted on the youngest Uley and that he felt a certain duty to protect and look out for her. I also knew that as the years had progressed, Collin had come to care for Lilly like a little sister and genuinely enjoyed her company.

Therefore, I knew he was in fact actually pissed off at me, and not just pretending to be in order to get a reaction out of me. He cared about Lilly and the fact that I had upset her at Kim and Jared's the other night made him angry. It made _me_ angry.

I still didn't know how to fix it. I didn't even know what I had _done_.

"You need to talk to her," Collin said, a little nicer now.

I could see we were past the lecture stage of the intervention and were now onto the "consoling" stage.

I squeezed my eyes together. "I _can't_ talk to her."

"Bray," Collin sighed.

I ignored him, thinking back to a few nights ago—the last time I had seen my imprint. Each and every time it went through my mind—and believe me, I had thought about it a lot over the last forty-eight hours—it made me sick to my stomach. I could see the way the tears filled her bright blue eyes, the way her breath hitched and seemed to stick in her throat in a way that made me panic a million times over, or how she seemed to hold onto herself like it was the only way to keep from falling apart.

Bile rose in my throat and I had to swallow it away.

I knew that even if I hadn't imprinted on Lilly, that I would have loved her anyway. She was the most perfect, most amazing person in the entire world and I couldn't imagine someone more special. And because she was so special, the worst thing in the world was seeing her upset over anything.

So because of this, it made me feel like the worst person ever to have seen her so upset the other night and not know the cause of it or how to fix it. From the day I had imprinted on her, I vowed to keep her safe and happy.

I was failing miserably at both.

I sank down on the edge of the messy bed and a moment later, I felt Collin join me. He threw his arm around my shoulders and gave me a rough pat in the middle of my back.

"Bray—"

"I totally screwed up, Collin."

He raised an eyebrow. "Wow, you folded fast."

I growled.

He slid away to the top of the mattress, putting some space between us. "Okay, okay," he exclaimed. "And I know what you're referring to, but Bray, that's not where you screwed up."

"Oh, I _know_ , I'm going to like this," I muttered.

"Lilly's sixteen, man," he murmured. "She's gonna go through stuff that you aren't going to have any control over. And, right now, instead of moping about her not being happy, you should be _with_ her—supporting her as she goes through all the stuff that teenage girls go through."

I raised an eyebrow.

His eyes widened. "Okay, maybe not _all_ stuff that teenage girls go through," he corrected himself. "But, Bray, Lilly loves you. I know you don't believe me, but she does. And I know there's nothing more that she would want than to have you with her right now."

I played with a loose thread on the mattress. "But, what if I'm the reason she's upset?"

He shrugged. "So? Then, you'll find a way to make it right. But, sleeping all-day and missing patrol isn't that way. You don't even know _what_ caused her to be upset in the first place. So, maybe your first step is finding the source of her sadness and then trying to figure out how to make it better."

Looking up, I stared at him for a long moment. "Since when are you smart?"

He punched my shoulder. "You're an ass."

I got to my feet and headed towards the door, only stopping when I heard Collin's voice again.

"Ugh, _what_?" I exclaimed.

"Where are you going?"

"To see Lilly?"

Collin chuckled. "Bray?"

"What, Collin?" I snapped.

"You may want to put on pants first."

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 **I feel like I'm always apologizing for the lack of updates, but I'm hoping I'll eventually get back on track. I know this one was short, but I have never done a different POV in any of my fanfics before so I'm quite happy how it turned out. Hope you guys are still with me and enjoyed it! Review please :)**


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